


Jumanji: Full Circle

by Nekomata58919



Category: Jumanji (1995), Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (Movies)
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, Animal Death, Danger, Eventual Sex, Feelings Are Confusing, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Jefferson has dirty thoughts, M/M, Minor Character Death, POV Multiple, Rating and Warnings Subject to Change, Slow Burn, Tags May Change, Two OCs - Freeform, attempting to sound like I know what I'm talking about, but not really, little bit of Bethany/Alex, set after Jumanji: The Next Level, some violence, this was supposed to be simple but plot happened, time travel nonsense
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-04
Updated: 2020-11-27
Packaged: 2021-03-02 18:14:10
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 59,058
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24011131
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nekomata58919/pseuds/Nekomata58919
Summary: They thought it was over, but Jumanji has a lot more in store for everyone.
Relationships: Jefferson "Seaplane" McDonough/Sheldon "Shelly" Oberon
Comments: 161
Kudos: 94





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello Jumanji fans!  
> I told myself I wasn't going to write a fanfic, but did I listen to myself? No. I then told myself I'd just do a simple Seaplane/Shelly fic and that would be it, but did I listen to myself that time? Nope. So now I have this monster of a plot. Basically it's a combination of what I think might happen in the next move, what I'd like to happen, and what would likely never happen but would be cool anyway. And Seashelly.  
> I'm not making promises on how often I'll update because reasons, so you're warned. Still, I hope you all enjoy this story! :)

Ostriches.

A whole flock of ostriches just ran down the street, right in front of their eyes, right past Nora’s Diner in Brantford, New Hampshire. Of all the things Bethany had expected to happen that night—and to be fair she hadn’t expected much—an ostrich sighting was not one of them. She looked to Martha, to Spencer, to Fridge, all who seemed just as shocked. Good. So she wasn’t crazy and seeing things, then.

“What the _hell_ was that?” Fridge demanded, watching the ostriches round the corner and disappear. His voice was strained and he looked like he was about to explode, despite not eating that slice of cake.

“Ostriches,” Spencer replied dully.

Martha gave a weak laugh. “I thought you were the zoologist, Fridge.”

Fridge glared at her. “I know it was damn ostriches! What I want to know is why they were here!” He rounded on Spencer. “That better not have been from that game! We finished it! _Again!”_

“How would it have been from Jumanji?” Bethany asked, crossing her arms. “We always go into the game, it’s never come to _us_ before. Maybe they just, like, escaped from a zoo?”

“A zoo? When has there ever been a zoo around here?” Fridge snapped.

Bethany frowned up at him. “I don’t know. I’m just saying, maybe there’s a good explanation.”

“Okay, okay, calm down guys,” Spencer said, stepping between them. “Let’s just go back to my place and check. Then we’ll know for sure if it’s… related or not.”

Martha smiled at Spencer and nodded. “Good idea, Spencer.” She blinked, then looked back into the diner. “Grandpa Eddie brought us here, should we have him bring us back?”

Bethany leaned around her to see Grandpa Eddie chatting up Nora. He hadn’t even noticed them getting up to leave. “I’d feel bad leaving him here, but maybe it’d be safer? Sure he was okay in the game, but he wasn’t, like, himself either? So if this _is_ Jumanji, then he could get hurt.”

Spencer sighed and headed for the car. “Yeah, I think he’s okay here. We’ll come get him after. Besides, he looks happy, and I don’t want to change that.”

Fully agreed, they all climbed into the car and took off. And after speeding way above the limit despite the risk of black ice on the road, they came to a screeching halt at the end of Spencer’s driveway. His driveway which had not only his mom’s car, but some water heating repair truck. Normally that wouldn’t be alarming, however, the broken windows and the open door were.

“Should we… go in?” Spencer asked. He had a white knuckled grip on the steering wheel.

“We won’t know what’s happening if we don’t,” Martha said, hand settling awkwardly on his elbow.

The slam of the car door startled them. Fridge stomped towards the dark porch, shoulders tense. The rest of them scrambled out and hurried after him. No way would any of them be caught alone if Jumanji really was responsible. Fridge shouldered the door open further. He leapt back with a yelp.

Screeching monkeys burst from the hall, pouring out over the porch and running across the snowy lawn to the street. One turned and let out a vicious snarl, gesturing wildly, before following its friends.

Fridge looked at them. “So it’s definitely Jumanji?”

“Yeah.”

“Definitely.”

“Obviously.”

Bethany couldn’t believe they were still going inside, and she found herself clinging to the back of Fridge’s shirt as they did. Martha’s shoulder brushed her own, and Bethany gave her a half-smile, which Martha returned.

“Mom’s really not gonna like this,” Spencer muttered, looking at the trashed living room.

“I think she’ll understand,” Martha replied. “… Maybe.”

They froze. A low, hurried drum beat echoed up from the basement, thrumming in Bethany’s chest. Her gut twisted. She almost missed the voices that followed.

Spencer looked around. “Ah!” He bent down and grabbed a dictionary. At their looks of confusion he explained, “I’m not going down there without a weapon, and this thing’s heavy.”

Fridge rolled his eyes and lead the way.

The wooden steps creaked beneath their feet. Down. Down. Down. Time moved so slowly, but also way too fast as the wall dropped away to reveal the cluttered basement. And the five shadows standing near the back.

Bethany screamed.

Spencer screamed. The difference being that he was running down the stairs past them at the shadows, dictionary swinging. A clatter. His defiant scream turned to one of terror. Fridge sprinted into the dark after him. Shouting from too many voices filled the air.

The light flicked on.

“Oh my god.”

Dr. Smolder Bravestone was standing in the center of the action, holding Spencer off the ground by his wrists. Ruby Roundhouse had her nunchucks at the ready, while Mouse and Professor Shelly stayed behind the both of them. Jefferson Seaplane was blinking and looking around in confusion.

A shadow sprang from nowhere, tackling Fridge to the ground. Ming Fleetfoot held a knife to his throat. “Move. I dare you,” she said.

“Whoa!” Fridge exclaimed, going completely still. His eyes crossed as he tried to look at the knife.

“Wait!” Martha ran down the stairs, Bethany close behind. “Let them go!”

Spencer looked up at Dr. Bravestone, eyes wide. _“You?”_

Dr. Bravestone arched an eyebrow and tilted his head. “Do we know each other?” He looked down at the dictionary, then at Fridge, Martha, and Bethany. Finally his attention turned to Ming. “Let him go.”

Ming shot him an annoyed look. “Why?”

“They’re unarmed,” Dr. Bravestone replied, gesturing at them with his free hand.

With a huff, Ming sheathed her blade and stood. Fridge rolled away and leapt to his feet, hand clutched to his throat.

Realizing he was still dangling Spencer high above the floor, Dr. Bravestone set him down. “Where are we?” he asked.

“Uh. My basement,” Spencer said, rubbing his wrist.

Ruby stepped closer, her grip on her nunchucks never letting up. “And where exactly is _that?”_

Spencer backed up, hitting a box of junk. “Brantford, New Hampshire. In America?” he clarified.

“That makes no sense,” Professor Shelly said. He pushed his glasses up his nose, shifting from foot to foot. “How could we have gotten from Jumanji to America? We didn’t fly.”

“Must be some sort of magic,” Mouse replied, giving the room a look of suspicion.

“Um, yeah, probably,” Bethany said, finally finding her voice again. She glanced at her friends. “Right? Jumanji’s definitely magic.”

Before anyone could respond, the ground trembled and the drums started up again. A flash of blinding green lit up the basement. Chittering filled the room. The light died and revealed the huge yellow kneed spiders swarming the basement walls and floor.

Bethany shrieked and ran. Screams and footsteps followed her up the stairs, along with a sickening crack and splatter. She didn’t want to know. Bethany didn’t stop running until she was outside, bent double in the snow and breathing hard. She shuddered and squirmed. “I hate spiders!”

She turned around to see that Spencer and Martha had followed her out. Fridge ran out next, followed by Shelly and Jefferson. Moments later Dr. Bravestone, Ruby, Mouse, and Ming joined them on the lawn.

“Something strange is going on,” Dr. Bravestone said, shaking spider guts off a machete. He handed it to Mouse, who tucked it away in his bag.

“Yeah? No kidding!” Fridge retorted. He grimaced, glancing back at the house.

“Okay, I think we all need to calm down for a second,” Jefferson said, clearly noticing the tension from Ruby at Fridge’s tone.

Dr. Bravestone nodded. “Exactly. Nothing good comes from panicking.” He rubbed a gloved hand over his chin, then turned to Spencer. “You recognized me earlier. I didn’t give you a chance to explain that so, please, explain.”

Spencer looked up at him. “Uh, okay? I’ll try, but it’s gonna sound crazy.”

“We’re used to crazy,” Ruby told him.

“Right. Yeah, makes sense.” Spencer scratched the back of his neck. “Okay… I guess first I should say: Hi, I’m Spencer… Uh, so, three years ago we”—he gestured at himself, Martha, Fridge, and Bethany—“were in school and got detention. While we were in detention we found a video game called Jumanji, and so we set it up.”

“What’s a _video game?_ ” Mouse interrupted.

Spencer looked a little lost for a second. “Oh. It’s like a movie, but also a board game? You know what movies are, right?”

“Yes, we know movies,” Shelly said. “I’m quite fond of _Northwest Passage.”_

Jefferson smiled. “I’m personally more of a fan of _Cassablanca_.”

Spencer frowned. “Those are really old.”

“That one was just made last year,” Jefferson said, brows raised.

“Wait, I’ve never heard of them. I mean, I don’t know a _lot_ about movies, but still. Were they in the top forty at all?” Bethany asked, crossing her arms.

“No, they’re _from_ the 40’s,” Martha said. She looked at the ground. “I took a film history class back at college.”

“Wow… Maybe we tackle one thing at a time,” Spencer sighed. He shook his head. “Okay, so, a video game is like a board game and a movie combined. I guess that’s the easiest way to explain it to you guys. Basically you get to control the characters in the story.”

“Fascinating,” Shelly muttered.

“And for us, Jumanji was a video game. But not a normal one, where you use a controller to do things,” Spencer continued. “We got sucked into the game. And we became… _you.”_

“Became us?” Dr. Bravestone asked, brows furrowed.

“Oh yeah, it was _so_ weird,” Bethany chirped. “Like, I don’t even know. You know? Oh, right, I guess you don’t.”

Spencer rested his hands on his hips, something he’d apparently picked up from Dr. Bravestone, who was standing similarly. “Yeah, we became you. We fell from the sky into an enormous jungle, and I wasn’t in my own body anymore. I was…” He looked at Dr. Bravestone. “I was you. Specifically.” Spencer gestured to Martha, Fridge, and Bethany in turn. “Martha was Ruby, Fridge was Mouse, and Bethany was Professor Shelly. Sheldon?”

“Shelly is fine,” Shelly replied, though based on tone and expression it seemed more like an automatic response.

“…That has to be the craziest thing I’ve ever heard,” Mouse said. He looked up at Dr. Bravestone. “And that’s including your insane plans.”

Dr. Bravestone waved off the good humored jab. “You say you were us. How can we know that’s true? After all, I’m sure I’ve been in control of all my own actions.”

The others made noises of agreement.

“We helped save Jumanji by getting the Jaguar’s Eye jewel back to the Jaguar,” Martha pointed out. “And just a few days ago we stopped Jurgen from stealing the Falcon Jewel.”

“I’ve gotta admit, that’s convincing,” Jefferson said, shrugging a single shoulder.

“Unless they worked for Jurgen,” Ming sneered. “Maybe this is a trap for revenge.”

Spencer shook his head, gesturing wildly. “No, no, no, I swear we don’t work for him! At all!”

“Yeah, that guy was nuts,” Fridge said with a snort. “Still can’t believe I had to pretend to be a eunuch.”

Bethany giggled. As terrifying as the situation had been, that was still hilarious. “Come on, it was for a good cause… Right, Brother Tomatoli?”

“Ha, ha. Funny,” Fridge grumbled.

“I believe them,” Ruby said, startling them all. She finally put her nunchucks in Mouse’s bag. “I’m good at telling when people are lying, and they aren’t.”

Dr. Bravestone smiled. “Then that settles that.”

“Oh! We so need to text Alex about this,” Bethany exclaimed, whipping out her phone. She typed out a quick text, trying not to think too hard about how nice it was to have his number. Finished, Bethany looked over at Jefferson. “He was you for, like, twenty years.”

Jefferson’s eyes widened. “Twenty years?”

Bethany gave him a sad smile. “Yeah. When we got out of the game he went back to his time, though. It was really… bittersweet.”

Ming huffed. “Then I guess I was the only one not controlled. Good. Only I control me.”

“About that…” Martha trailed off, looking at Spencer.

Spencer groaned. “Yeah, right, when I went back to Jumanji I ended up playing as you.” He didn’t meet her cold stare. “And so did my grandpa. After, I switched back to Dr. Bravestone.”

“I see.”

“This is all very confusing. Enlightening, but confusing,” Prof. Shelly said, removing his pith helmet. “What does this all mean?”

Dr. Bravestone looked off into the distance, eyes smoldering. “It means we’re starting our next adventure.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did have this chapter ready to go, so, here! Hope you all enjoy it!

Shelly’s mind spun with all the new information. It hadn’t completely sunk in quite yet that, to these people, he and his companions were nothing more than fictional characters. Ones they had controlled somehow. That didn’t make much sense to him, as far as he was concerned. As Dr. Bravestone had said, he recalled making all his own decisions.

“We need to make a plan,” Dr. Bravestone announced. “A plan to figure out why we’re here, how it happened, and what to do about it.”

“Um, guys?” the blonde girl—Bethany—piped up, holding a glowing object aloft. “Alex texted back and told us to meet him at his place.”

“We can’t all fit in Grandpa Eddie’s car,” Spencer said, jerking his head at a rather sleek looking automobile.

Well, sleek compared to the cars Shelly was used to, but this one was also clearly warn down from time. And he was no expert on cars, but even he could see Spencer was right.

Bethany groaned in a dramatic fashion. “I don’t know why I didn’t think of that. Lemme tell him that.” She turned her attention to the glowing device.

Unable to contain his curiosity, Shelly approached. “Excuse me? What is that?”

“Huh?” Bethany looked up. She broke into a grin. _“Ohmygod,_ it’s still, like, so weird to see you and not _be_ you.” Realizing his question, she held out the device. “It’s a cellphone.”

“A cell phone?” Shelly peered at the thing. He decided to deal with the other comment later.

Bethany gasped. “Oh, right, if you don’t know what video games are you definitely don’t know about cellphones! They’re small telephones you can do lots of things with. Like, almost no-one uses them as actual phones anymore. We can take pictures, we can text—that’s like email—wait you don’t know that one either.”

Shelly swore he was out of breath himself, and he hadn’t even been the one speaking.

“Um, so like a handwritten letter, but you do it with this instead of a pencil or pen and it gets to a person instantly,” Bethany clarified. She looked at the red-headed girl—Martha. “That’s right, right?”

Martha nodded. “Yeah, basically.”

“Yes!” Bethany cheered, pumping a fist into the air. She looked pleased with herself. A little _ding_ sound caught her attention and she turned her attention to her cellphone. Bethany looked up at everyone. “Alex said he’ll be right over to get us.”

A large black car pulled up about fifteen minutes later. The door opened and a man who appeared to be in his 40s, with short black hair, and dressed in a similar fashion to the others of this world climbed out. He took all of them in with a shell-shocked expression.

“It’s true…” Alex said. He shook his head, looking at Bethany. “I believed you, obviously, but it’s different to actually see it.”

Bethany bit her lip and smiled. “I get it.”

“Okay, so can we go now before any other animals show up?” Fridge—which surely must have been a nickname—demanded.

“Shouldn’t we get the game?” Alex asked with a frown.

A loud roar exploded from the house.

“That’s gonna be a no from me,” Fridge replied, going straight for the smaller car.

Finbar looked at Dr. Bravestone. “I may be a zoologist, but I agree. No need to face an angry jaguar if we can help it.”

Dr. Bravestone nodded and Finbar followed Fridge.

Spencer hurried after them. “I think we can fit one more in here!” he called back over his shoulder.

Ms. Fleetfoot gave a long suffering sigh and joined them. Which left the rest of them to sort themselves into Alex’s car. Bethany hopped up into the passenger's side, while Martha and Ruby took the back seats, leaving Shelly and Jefferson the middle ones. Shelly looked out of the tinted windows as they drove off. A jaguar burst out of the front door. It watched them go, eyes glinting in the dark. Shelly shuddered and turned away.

The houses they passed were a mix of styles—Queen Anne, Bungalow, American Colonial—but there was something about them that was different. What that was, he couldn’t say. Shelly wished he had a map of the area, the comforting crinkle of paper in his hands, depictions of forests, rivers, mountains, and roads giving the lay of the land, having a use. This was all beyond his scope of knowledge. A nudge of his arm startled him.

“Hey, are you alright?” Jefferson asked, voice low so only Shelly would hear.

Shelly gave a weak smile. “Yes, of course. This is all just so… unusual. And yourself?”

“I don’t know. You said it, this is weird,” Jefferson replied with a chuckle.

He seemed so calm. Shelly fiddled with his pith helmet which he held on his lap. “I’m curious about all of this. I’d love to study this place—world? But it seems we won’t have time,” he said after a moment. Shelly sighed and rested his head against the back of his seat. “Whatever is going on, we’ll need to solve it quickly.”

Jefferson nodded. “We’ll figure it out.” He smiled at Shelly. “Who knows, maybe we’ll be able stick around for a little after? Learn more then.”

“Perhaps.”

They arrived minutes later at a pale Colonial home, the exact color difficult to guess in the dark. Both cars parked and they all poured out of them, reminding Shelly a little of the rhinoceroses which had stampeded the gorge Jefferson flew them through. Alex led the way up the slush-lined drive, past the stately columns along the porch, and into the home.

It was quite beautiful inside. The warm glow from chandeliers, a s imple black lamp on an ornate hall table, and the Christmas tree in the far back made the place feel comfortable, despite it belonging to a stranger. A painting of a barn greeted them as they filled out the space, boots loud on the dark hardwood floors. 

“Oh! What about your kids?” Bethany asked, looking up at Alex with wide eyes. “I totally didn’t think to ask about them! I’m sorry.”

Alex shook his head. “I wouldn’t have offered for everyone to come here if it was going to be a problem,” he replied. “They’re with their mom. She has them after Christmas this year.”

Bethany gave a slow nod, smile polite as she broke eye contact.

“So,” Alex clapped his hands together, turning his attention to everyone. He gestured to a cream couch with Christmas themed pillows tucked in the corners. It, along with a matching arm chair, were arranged in front of a fireplace, above which hung a device similar to Bethany’s phone, but larger. He grabbed the chairs from his dining room and set them in the living room. “Everyone take a seat, and we’ll figure out what we can.”

Shelly waited for everyone but Alex to find their seats before choosing his, the dining chair next to the couch where Jefferson, Ruby, and Finbar sat—his bag was set between his legs, secure. The little white cushion made the chair more comfortable than it otherwise would have been. Spencer, Bethany, Martha, and Fridge had all taken seats on the floor.

Alex kept shooting Jefferson and Shelly odd looks as he stood by the fireplace. “Okay, what exactly happened here?” he asked, turning his attention to Spencer.

Spencer shook his head, curls bouncing. “I don’t know. One minute we were all at Nora’s and then as we left a whole bunch of ostriches—”

“A flock,” Finbar said. “A group of ostriches is called a flock, or sometimes a pride.”

“Uh, right, yeah. A flock of ostriches ran past the diner,” Spencer continued. “We went to my place and there were monkeys running around, and then we found _them_ in the basement.”

“And then we were chased out by giant gross spiders,” Bethany added.

Alex nodded. “I remember seeing some around my hideout. Not a fun time,” he said with a sympathetic smile.

“I’m sorry, but I still find that hard to understand,” Dr. Bravestone spoke up. “Like I said before, we’ve been in control of our actions the whole time.”

Bethany looked at Shelly. “So, you like, don’t remember getting eaten by a rhino?”

“It was a hippo,” Fridge corrected. “Also a python. When I was controlling you the second time.”

Shelly’s brows rose. “No. I’ve never been eaten by anything, or I wouldn’t be here.”

“So you guys don’t have life bars?” Martha asked, gesturing at her forearm.

“What are life bars?” Ruby asked with a frown.

Finbar pointed at her with a nod, then looked at Fridge. “And I thought you controlled me? If we’re believing that at all.”

Fridge sighed. “I did. The first time. The second time when Spencer’s Grandpa Eddie went in—”

“Grandpa Eddie!” Spencer exclaimed, leaping up from the floor. He ran for the door. “I’ve gotta go get him! He can’t go back to the house!”

The front door slammed behind him, and Fridge huffed in annoyance. “Glad I won’t be there for _that_ conversation,” he muttered. “Anyway, there was this whole body switching thing going on the second time.”

“That was _not_ fun,” Bethany said, leaning back on the floor to rest against her hands. “I had to be a horse! I mean, it would’ve been cool to fly, but still. I was so happy to be Professor Shelly again when we switched back.” She grinned up at Shelly. “Because of you I got into traveling! I still don’t really get the whole cartographer thing, but it’s pretty cool.”

Shelly was still confused by the whole thing, but it was still flattering. Of course, perhaps she was only happy because being him was just better than being a horse, but he would take the compliment.

“It was kinda fun learning how to pee as a guy that first time, though,” Bethany concluded with an innocent shrug.

_“What?”_ Shelly’s face heated. Had she—Oh no. Ruby tried in vain to muffle her amused snort behind her fist. Finbar and Dr. Bravestone were both biting back laughs of their own. Only Ms. Fleetfoot and Jefferson didn’t have any visible reaction. Fridge looked as though he were trying to repress a particularly uncomfortable memory. Shelly decided he didn’t want to know why.

Martha cleared her throat. _“Anyway._ So, life bars are a way to show how many lives you have in a video game,” she explained. “In video games you usually have multiple, and we had three. They showed up as black bars on our—your—forearms.”

Shelly rolled up his sleeves and looked at both his inner forearms. They were void of any black bars.

“Oh, and when we tapped our chests, over our hearts, we got pop-ups that showed your strengths and weaknesses,” Martha continued. “Like Ruby being able to dance fight and use nunchucks, but being weak to venom.”

“Or Mouse being a zoologist and good with languages, but being slow and whatever the hell is wrong with cake,” Fridge said, leaning his arms against his folded legs. He frowned up at Finbar. “What’s up with that, by the way? If you eat cake as you, would you explode like I did?”

“That was so scary! But also kinda funny,” Bethany giggled. She bit her lip at Fridge’s unamused glance. “Sorry.”

Finbar scratched at his chin. “No. At least I certainly hope not,” he said. “There’s something in cake that me and some of my family are allergic to. One of my brothers ate some cake once and went into some kind of shock before dying. And my mother said something about it happening to an aunt of mine. I don’t want to risk it myself.”

Fridge gave a slow nod. “Huh. Wow, that sucks, man.”

“It does,” Finbar agreed. He looked at Dr. Bravestone. “As strange as it is, I think I believe what they’re saying. I don’t know how else someone would know about cake being a weakness of mine.”

Dr. Bravestone nodded. “For this to be a trick is… unlikely. I don’t see what they would get out of it.” He sighed. “But that doesn’t help us figure out what to do about this.”

“Actually, I had an idea,” Alex said.

Before he could explain said idea, the door swung open.

“—forget me there like that, huh?” A short, balding elderly man stomped into the room, followed by a contrite looking Spencer. His gaze landed on all of them, and his eyes widened behind his glasses. “Whoa…”

“I tried to tell you,” Spencer said, carefully shutting the door behind them.

“I thought maybe you hit your head on somethin’, but I guess not,” Eddie said, squinting at them. “Huh. Guess I shouldn’t be surprised after everything.” He looked around, then up at Spencer. _“He’s_ not here, is he?”

Shelly didn’t miss the slight shake to his voice, and wondered who he meant. Someone important, it sounded like.

“No,” Spencer replied, giving a small shake of his head.

“Eh, probably for the best,” Eddie said with a half-smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. He wandered over to the group. “Someone gonna let me sit? I’m an old man and my back ain’t what it used to be.”

Ming stood from her chair, surprising the rest of the room.

“Oh, I remember you.” Eddie chuckled and sat in the offered chair with a groan. _“Oof._ Thanks.” He scratched at his scruffy facial hair. “Now, what’s goin’ on here?”

“We’re trying to figure that out, Grandpa Eddie,” Martha said. “Alex was saying he had an idea, though?”

“Yeah,” Alex said. “When I got back from Jumanji to 1996, I found out something. Honestly, I don’t know how I didn’t realize it earlier. Anyway, remember the tree house I stayed in? It belonged to Alan Parrish. There’s an Alan Parrish that lives around here, he owns Parrish Shoes.”

Bethany gave a little gasp. “Wait, you mean you think it’s the same guy?”

“It’d be a heck of a coincidence otherwise,” Alex replied with a grin. “If it is the same person, he’d know what we’re going through, sort of. I didn’t have the guts to talk to him on my own, I didn’t want to bring up traumatic memories, you know? But maybe he’d have some idea of what we’re dealing with.”

“I don’t know this Parrish, but that sounds like a good idea,” Dr. Bravestone said. “It’s someplace to start at least.”

Shelly nodded. It felt good to have a lead, even if it was a small one.

Alex smiled. “Great. We can go in the morning, then. It’s almost midnight as is.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “You’re all welcome to stay here? I have a guest bedroom… and there’s space out here. I can grab some blankets and pillows.”

“Oh! How about Martha, Spencer, Fridge and Grandpa Eddie stay with me? Dad’s got a business trip so he won’t care and Mom probably won’t mind. That way you guys have more space here,” Bethany suggested, tone bright.

Martha shrugged. “That could work.”

“I don’t know…” Alex rested his hands on his hips, brows furrowed. “With all those animals out there? And who knows what or who else? I think it might be safer if we all stick together.”

“Yeah. I like that plan,” Spencer said, crossing his arms. “Why take a risk like that when we don’t have to?”

Fridge nodded. “Exactly. That. Let’s do that.”

“Either way, looks I’m gonna have to go a night without the CPAP,” Eddie said. He shrugged. “Guess you’re all gonna have to deal with the snoring.”

Finbar opened his bag and rummaged through it. “I think I have something… Aha!” He pulled out six different bed rolls. “I only have these ones, though.”

Alex silently gave them all a head count. “Okay, Grandpa Eddie can take the guest bedroom. Two of you can use my daughter’s room, and two can use my son’s.”

“I’d say my friends and I can use the bed rolls. We’re used to it, and honestly I’d feel more comfortable if we stuck together ourselves,” Dr. Bravestone said.

Shelly nodded, even if he did wish for a bed. It made sense to split things up that way. No matter that these kids knew them in a way, when it came down to it, they were strangers.

Alex put the dining room chairs back where they belonged while everyone went about setting up their sleeping arrangements. Dr. Bravestone and Ruby chose spots where they could keep an eye on all the exits, Finbar stuck close to Dr. Bravestone as usual, and Ms. Fleetfoot had tucked herself into a corner that allowed for her to see the rest of the room. That left Shelly a place next to Jefferson between the couch and the fireplace.

“You could take the couch if you wanted to,” Jefferson said. Apparently Shelly’s groan as he lowered himself to the floor wasn’t as quiet as he’d hoped.

“No, no, I’m fine. Besides, it wouldn’t be fair to the others,” Shelly replied, brushing off his comment with a wave of his hand. He set aside his helmet and flopped back onto his bed roll, a bit like a dead fish or perhaps a walrus. Cheeks heating once more, he rolled onto his side, back to Jefferson.

Jefferson sighed, though what emotion it carried was unclear. “Good night.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope people are liking this so far. It's been fun to write, anyway. Well, enjoy chapter 3!

Breakfast was chaos; everyone trying to get food and find a place to sit, some people were definitely not morning people, and those that were grated on their nerves. Once everyone had their food and were settled, however, it calmed down.

Jefferson was happy with just his black coffee and a plate of scrambled eggs and toast. Nothing special, but comforting nonetheless. He wandered over to a window in the living room and peered outside. The snow on the front lawn glittered in the sunlight, and long, dripping icicles hung from the roof of the porch. No animals. Well, other than the cardinal pair that swooped past.

“Everything look okay?” Alex asked, coming up beside him with his own cup of coffee.

He was the one who had “controlled” Jefferson for twenty years. Jefferson wasn’t sure how to feel about that, besides concern for Alex’s mental state. To have grown up twice was something he couldn’t even begin to imagine. “Yeah, so far,” Jefferson said with a smile.

“—of ostriches was seen running down Main Street early this morning. Animal control was called, but the ostriches have yet to be found,” a strange female voice announced.

Jefferson turned to see the thing on the wall above the fireplace showing a neatly dressed woman sitting behind a desk. “…Is that a television?”

“Oh, yeah. I guess if you’re used to something from the 40’s, this would be really different,” Alex said.

“Sorry, I just wanted to see if anything had happened,” Spencer said, turning around on the couch to look at them.

“No worries.” Jefferson gave a small salute and a chuckle.

“This just in!” The news anchor declared. “A herd of zebras—wait, zebras? Yes, a herd of zebras was just spotted outside of an Irving Oil gas station and headed towards the local Hannaford Supermarket.”

Dr. Bravestone frowned in determination. “I think that’s our cue to get going,”

“Good. I’m tired of sitting around doing nothing,” Ruby replied, marching into the kitchen with her empty plate.

Shelly and Bethany gave matching groans of half-awake agreement. Jefferson stifled a laugh, though it was difficult when Shelly looked so shocked by it and Bethany giggled. He caught Alex’s fond smile, and wondered if they, too, matched. 

“As much as I liked the adventure in the game, I don’t think I’m up for another one,” Grandpa Eddie said, scratching at his balding head. “How ‘bout I hold the fort down here. I should also call your mom”—he looked pointedly at Spencer—“and see where she is.”

“Oh, yeah, right,” Spencer replied, scratching the back of his neck. “I hope she’s okay.”

“The sooner we end this, the more likely it’ll be that she is,” Ruby pointed out.

“Yes. Let’s go,” Ming agreed, heading for the front door.

Dr. Bravestone stepped in front of her, blocking the way. “First thing’s first. Empty your pockets.”

Ming lifted her chin and stared him in the eyes.

Dr. Bravestone didn’t budge.

“Fine.” Swearing under her breath in Chinese, Ming put several trinkets she’d snatched onto the hall table. Finished, she held her hands out to both sides and glared up at him. “There. Happy?”

Dr. Bravestone crossed his arms and arched an eyebrow.

Ming gave an annoyed huff. She pulled a watch from her boot and handed it over to Grandpa Eddie.

“Wow…” Grandpa Eddie shook his head and re-attached his watch. He grinned at her. “Impressive.”

It was hard to tell, but Jefferson swore Ming looked pleased by the compliment.

Spencer walked over. “Wait, you didn’t take anything from my place, did you?”

“Sorry, I don’t speak English,” Ming retorted.

“But you just—”

The slam of the front door cut him off.

Jefferson wasn’t sure what he’d expected of the Parrish home. As Alex had said, he had been using Alan Parrish’s treehouse as a base when he’d first gone to the jungles of Jumanji. He hadn’t known Alan himself, and all he had to go on was the treehouse and what had been left behind. While Jefferson didn’t know what to expect, a mansion still surprised him. 

A white two-story building with soaring columns, symmetrical with matching chimneys, shuttered windows, and one big circular window that looked out over the front yard. Alex parked just inside the stone walls that separated the mansion from the street, and Spencer parked behind them. They got out and he led them all up to the tall, double doors.

Alex swallowed visibly, staring at the painted wood. He grabbed one of the large lion head doorknockers and knocked three times. 

Several moments passed before the door opened. A woman who appeared to be in her late fifties, graying blonde hair pulled back into a bun, peered out at them, taking in the many strangers standing on her doorstep. “Hello. Can I help you?”

“Yes, I think so. I hope so,” Alex replied with a small, polite smile. “My name is Alex Vreeke, and these are… my friends. You’re Sarah Parrish, right? Wife of Alan Parrish?”

The woman, Sarah, gave a little nod. “I am.”

“Then, have you ever heard of Jumanji?” Alex asked, shoulders tense.

Sarah’s eyes widened, the hand holding onto the door tightened, knuckles going white. “How do you know that name?” she demanded, voice shaking. 

“I played it, and so did they,” Alex said, gesturing for Spencer, Fridge, Martha, and Bethany to come forward. 

“Oh god.” Sarah closed her eyes, shaking her head. “No, no, no. Not again.” Her eyes snapped open and she looked around them at the street. Frowning, she opened the door further and stepped back. “In. We’ll talk about this  _inside.”_

They all filed into the mansion. Sarah led them through the clean hallway, which led to a grand, sweeping staircase, and into a living room, the main feature of which was a large fireplace. There was enough space on the two long beige couches and high-backed armchairs for everyone to sit. 

Sarah muttered to herself as she pulled out a phone similar to Bethany’s. “Alan’s not here right now,” she told them, walking from the room. “But he’ll get his butt over here when he hears this.”

“I kind of feel bad coming here,” Martha said softly. “Did you see how scared she was?”

Spencer took her hand. “I know, but I don’t think we have a lot of choice.”

Jefferson’s attention was grabbed by Shelly, who had gotten up and gone over to the huge bookcase. He was looking over the books and the pictures that had been stored there. 

Sarah’s heels clicking on the hardwood floors announced her return. “Alan will be here as soon as possible,” she said, tugging at her lavender cardigan before crossing her arms. “In the meantime… Tell me everything you can.”

“Yeah, of course,” Alex agreed. 

And so they did. Sarah listened intently, not interrupting even when she was visibly confused. The slam of the front doors halted the story in its tracks. Hurried footsteps followed in its wake. A man around Sarah’s age stepped into view, and Sarah rushed over to him. His dark brown hair was falling out of its neat part, his eyes were wide, lending to the disheveled appearance that contrasted with his suit.

“Where’s the game?” Alan exclaimed, looking around the room wildly.

“We, uh, we didn’t bring it,” Spencer said with a grimace.

Alan spluttered. “What do you mean you didn’t bring it!?” he exploded.

“Alan! Alan, please, calm down,” Sarah said, following him.

“Calm down!? Sarah, they played  _the game_ . Who knows what they brought here,” Alan stressed, turning and grabbing her by the arms. 

Sarah cupped his face in her hands. “Breathe. Remember? Deep breaths,” she soothed. “They’ve been telling me what happened. It’s not the same.”

Alan closed his eyes, slowing his breathing. “What do you mean  _not the same?_ ”

“Well, it’s not a board game anymore,” Sarah replied, letting go of him. “Apparently it’s a video game now.”

“What?” Alan shook his head. He gave a disbelieving chuckle and pinched the bridge of his nose. “No, actually, why not? I wouldn’t put it past that demon of a game to be able to do something like change its form.” He dropped his hand and looked at his guests. “So who are you? Why are you here?”

Alex stood. “I’m Alex Vreeke. I went into the game twenty-three years ago,” he explained. “Spencer, Martha, Fridge, and Bethany here”—he gestured to each in turn—“went in three years ago and got me out. I returned to my own time, and they went back to theirs.”

Alan frowned. “Wait, so you four remember the game?”

“Um, yeah? Why wouldn’t we?” Bethany asked.

Sarah exchanged a brief look with Alan. “Well, it worked out differently for us. Alan and I played the game as kids, but Alan got sucked into the game.” She took a deep breath, an expression of pain flitting through her eyes. “Twenty-six years later, two kids—Judy and Peter—found the game and played it, bringing him back.”

“Along with everything else,” Alan remarked, fondly exasperated. “Except when we finished the game, Sarah and I went back to when we were kids. Judy and Peter don’t remember a thing.”

“Oh,” Bethany murmured, looking sad. She glanced at Alex, then away.

Fridge leaned forward against his knees. “Hold up, so, they played the game but forgot it, but we played the game and remembered? How the hell does that work?”

“Maybe…” Spencer rubbed his chin. “Maybe it’s because we were in the game itself? Did Judy and Peter go inside?”

“No, only Alan.” Sarah said. She nodded slowly. “But I think I get what you’re saying. Only those who’ve been in Jumanji remember it.”

“That makes a twisted kind of sense,” Alan agreed, hands on his hips. He turned his attention on Dr. Bravestone, Ruby, Shelly—who’d quickly returned to the couch—Mouse, Ming, and Jefferson. “And you guys are?”

Dr. Bravestone stood and held out his hand. “Dr. Smolder Bravestone,” he said with a smile. “These are my friends and associates, Ruby Roundhouse, Franklin ‘Mouse’ Finbar, Professor Shelly Oberon, Jefferson ‘Seaplane’ McDonnough, and Ming Fleetfoot.”

Alan ignored the offered hand. “You’re from the game, aren’t you?”

Ever unoffended, Dr. Bravestone dropped his hand, smile intact. “Yes, we are. But I’d say it’s a little more complicated than that.”

“They were our avatars in the game,” Spencer said. “But they don’t remember things that way.”

“Avatars?” Alan asked, brows furrowed.

“We chose them as characters, but when we went into the game, we became them,” Martha explained. “Sort of. Our minds were in their bodies, I guess would be the best way to explain it.”

Alex nodded. “I was Jefferson while I was in Jumanji. I had to hide in your treehouse, Mr. Parrish,” he said.

“Which is how you knew about us,” Sarah said, understanding lighting up her eyes.

“And I remember doing the same, but I was in control of my own actions,” Jefferson spoke up.

Alan ran his fingers through his hair. “It really did change things. I was myself the whole time I was in Jumanji. Me, my mind, my body.” He shook his head. “So, what, you came here to figure out how to send them back into the game?”

“Yeah. Them and all the animals that are getting out,” Spencer said.

“The animals have gotten out?” Alan demanded, all calm vanishing once again. “Why didn’t you say so before?”

“We were getting to it,” Fridge retorted.

“You said “and everything else” when you said Judy and Peter got you out of the game,” Martha said. “Does that mean the animals got out before?”

“That’s exactly what that means,” Alan said, stern. “But I don’t know how we’re going to put them back.”

“You don’t?” Bethany asked, eyes wide.

Alan threw his hands up. “Jumanji was a board game before! There were rules, and dice, and we moved in turns. Now it’s a video game! You went in and became someone else. The rules have changed. The game’s changed. So no, I don’t know how we fix this.”

“I think it means we need to figure out the new rules first,” Sarah said. “That’d be a good place to start. And how to win. They’ve played twice before and won. We just need to figure out how to win  _this_ time.” 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to those of you reading this fic and leaving comments and kudos! I very much appreciate it! I hope you enjoy this next chapter.

Spencer cleared his throat, catching Alan and Sarah’s attention. “Uh, well, both times we beat the final boss. I’d guess we’d have to do the same here.”

“Yeah!” Fridge agreed, smacking the palm of one hand with his fist. He quickly deflated, however. “But, there isn’t one this time… Right?”

“Did anyone else come out with you guys?” Martha asked Dr. Bravestone.

Dr. Bravestone shook his head. “It was just us.”

Bethany frowned. If there wasn’t a boss or whatever, then they couldn’t beat the game. Was that what Jumanji wanted? From the way Alan and Sarah talked about the thing, it was like it was alive and could think. It had its rules and played by them. So there had to be a boss for them to fight… Bethany gasped, an idea springing to mind. “Wait a sec! What if the boss hasn’t shown up yet because it’s not time?”

“What do you mean?” Martha asked, tilting her head.

“Like, when we played before, we were told about Van Pelt and—”

“Van Pelt?” Alan asked, looking haunted.

Bethany nodded. “He was the boss in the first game. Did you know him?”

Sarah snorted and crossed her arms. “Oh yeah, we knew him. The asshole hunted Alan down like he was an animal.”

“Got some nasty flashbacks when we had to read  _The Most Dangerous Game_ in school,” Alan said.

“That doesn’t sound like him,” Dr. Bravestone said, setting his hands on his hips. “He… he only cared about treasure.”

Alan gave him a look. “He hunted me down the entire time I was in the game. You think I don’t know Van Pelt?”

“Well, other things changed, maybe it was a different Van Pelt?” Bethany suggested. “The Van Pelt we ran into was super creepy! He had one eye and controlled all the animals in the game.”

Sarah huffed and shook her head. “Okay, another weird difference. That’s definitely not the same Van Pelt.” She looked from Alan to Dr. Bravestone. “The one we dealt with was a game hunter—complete with pith helmet, old-school hunting outfit, and a gun.”

_“Okaaay,_ well I don’t think it really matters since our Van Pelt is dead,” Fridge said. He turned to Bethany. “What were you getting at?”

“Oh yeah!” Bethany nodded to herself, getting her thoughts back on track. “Okay, so, we were told about Van Pelt and Jurgen before we ever met them, and before we met them we had to go through a bunch of different levels.”

“That’s right,” Spencer agreed with a smile. “We had levels to beat. So maybe we have levels to beat here, too.”

Bethany grinned. “Yeah! Exactly!” She gasped again, jumping to her feet and rushing over to Shelly. “Shelly, do you have a map on you?”

Shelly blinked, surprised. “I do, yes,” he said. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a folded up map. “I don’t know what good it will do here, though, this is a map of Jumanji.”

“When we were in the game, levels showed up on my—sorry, your—map! Maybe it’ll be the same here?” Bethany said. 

“If you say so.” Shelly unfolded the map. He adjusted his glasses and frowned down at it, tilting it this way and that. “How strange. It’s… I don’t recognize this map at all.”

Bethany shifted to stand beside him and peered over at the map. “Oh, wow! It’s Brantford!” She grabbed the map and stretched it out on the coffee table. “Can you guys see it?”

“It  _is_ Brantford,” Spencer said, awed as everyone gathered around the map. The style was reminiscent of when it had shown Jumanji, except this time it was showing Nora’s Diner, Spencer’s house, and Alex’s house. The rest was blank. “Or at least part of it.”

“I’m surprised we can all actually see it,” Fridge muttered.

Bethany pointed at the small drawing of Nora’s Diner. “And look! It says  Level One: The Arrival.” Another, smaller, bit of writing and a green check mark caught her eye. “The Parrish Home, Check Point. What does that mean?”

Spencer looked up from the map. “It means this place has to be a safe spot. Check points in games are usually where you can save, and if you die you re-spawn there.”

“That’s great and all, but we don’t have those life bars you mentioned,” Jefferson said, gesturing at his arm. “Neither do you. Would it still work the same?”

“Hm…” Spencer stood back and ran his fingers through his hair. “I don’t know. I mean, some games don’t have life bars and the check points replace them. But sometimes they do have life bars, and the check point is just where the characters re-spawn until they run out of bars.” 

Fridge shook his head. “I don’t know about you guys, but I don’t wanna test it. Let’s just try and not die at all.”

“I like that plan,” Mouse said, nodding.

“But then what’s the point of the check point?” Bethany asked.

“Well…” Martha looked at Spencer. “Do you think it could just mean we can’t get attacked here?”

Spencer shrugged. “I guess? It would make sense.”

There was a loud knocking at the front door.

“Were you expecting someone?” Ruby asked Alan.

“No,” Alan replied with a frown. 

Dr. Bravestone turned to Mouse. “Do you have our weapons?”

“Of course I do.” Mouse opened up his bag, which he’d set down by the couch, and pulled out a boomerang. He handed it to Dr. Bravestone before pulling out nunchucks for Ruby, and a pistol for Jefferson.

Sarah eyed the bag. “How many things do you have in there?”

Mouse closed the bag and slung it over his shoulders. “As many as I need.”

The knocking came again as everyone walked down the long hallway. Alan stopped in front of the door, his hand resting on the doorknob. He schooled his features and cracked open the door. 

“Hello, sir! I’m sorry to bother you, but might Dr. Bravestone be here?” came a familiar British voice.

Bethany stood on her tip toes to get a look. Sure enough, Nigel Billingsley stood outside with a bright grin.

“Nigel?” Dr. Bravestone spoke up before Alan could respond. He tucked his boomerang into his belt and approached the door, which Alan opened fully. 

“Dr. Bravestone! How good to see you,” Nigel greeted, reaching out to shake his hand. “I was worried I wouldn’t find you.” He caught sight of everyone else. “Wonderful! Ruby Roundhouse, Professor Sheldon Oberon, Jefferson ‘Seaplane’ McDonough, and Ming Fleetfoot are all here, too. That makes this all a lot easier.”

“Who are you?” Alan asked.

Nigel’s brows rose. “Oh, my apologies. Nigel Billingsley, at your service.” He shook Alan’s hand. “Normally I’m a field guide for Jumanji, but it appears I’ve somehow ended up in this strange town. I’ve been searching far and wide for Dr. Bravestone, and my instincts led me here.” 

“Maybe he should come inside?” Martha suggested. 

Alan didn’t look thrilled, but he stepped aside. He shut the door behind Nigel as he entered the home. “Instincts?”

“Yes. I wish I could explain it better, but that’s the best I’ve got,” Nigel replied with a chuckle and a shake of his head. He turned back to Dr. Bravestone. “My friend, I’m sorry to say, but I have grave news.”

“What is it?” Dr. Bravestone asked, brow furrowed.

Nigel sighed. “It appears our reasonable assumption of Jurgen The Brutal’s death was, unfortunately, wrong.” 

Dr. Bravestone looked stunned.  _“What?”_

“How is that possible?” Shelly asked. “We saw him fall!”

“I know, I know. I, too, was shocked by this revelation,” Nigel said, expression and tone serious. “But it is true. I wouldn’t have said anything if I wasn’t sure. And if he wasn’t holding Flame hostage.”

Everyone jumped at the sound of Dr. Bravestones fist slamming into the nearby wall. “He took her!?”

Nigel nodded, looking apologetic. “I’m sorry, but yes. My informant told me he was hoping to goad you into a rematch.” 

Bethany leaned over to Shelly. “Who’s Flame?” she whispered.

“Dr. Bravestone’s ex lover. I don’t know the full story about them, but she helped us on our journey to find Jurgen,” Shelly whispered back.

_“Ohh,_ her, right. I remember her.” Bethany felt bad for Dr. Bravestone. If the way Flame had acted in the game was any indication, it seemed they’d been pretty into each other, and Flame still might’ve been. 

Nigel placed a comforting hand on Dr. Bravestone’s arm. “I felt it important to give you that information as soon as possible. Now that you’re aware of the situation, I can go and collect more. If I find out anything useful, you’ll be the first to know. I promise.”

Dr. Bravestone took a deep breath, then nodded. “Thank you, Nigel. You’ve always been reliable,” he said with a strained, but genuine, smile. 

“Good luck to you all.” Nigel gave them all a salute and headed back out into the world.

“I still don’t get how he survived,” Fridge said, looking around at them. “I mean, the dude fell from a blimp! And now he’s here?”

“Oh crap…”

Everyone turned to look at Spencer. His eyes were wide and his hands shook.

“What is it?” Martha asked, moving closer to him.

“I… I didn’t really think about it then, but…” Spencer’s breathing picked up. “Jurgen, he—when we fought—oh god! He had a—” Words failing, he gestured at his chest. “I smacked the Jumanji Berry into his chest and stats popped up. I didn’t think! What if Jurgen was an avatar? And he survived because he had a life left?”

Bethany’s hand flew to her mouth. “No!”

“What the hell? For real?” Fridge asked, blinking. “Tell me you’re joking.”

Spencer shook his head. “I’m not! He had stats! It said his weakness was the berry!” His hands dove into his hair and he doubled over. “I almost killed someone. I could’ve been a murderer!”

“Hey, whoa, no!” Martha wrapped her arms around him in a comforting embrace. “You didn’t know, and he’s alive. Remember? Nigel just said he’s alive. And even if he wasn’t, you were saving a whole bunch of people.”

“Martha’s right,” Bethany said, nodding. “The guy was clearly evil, even if he was a player.”

Fridge cleared his throat. “Uh, not to make things worse, but does that mean there might be two psychopaths running around Brantford now?”

Martha shot him a look.

Spencer pulled out of her hug. “We’ve gotta bring Grandpa Eddie and my mom back here,” he said, still shaken. “If this is a safe spot, we can’t let them be out there with all those animals  _and_ two maniacs on the loose.”

“The best thing we can do is stop Jurgen, then all of this will be solved,” Dr. Bravestone announced with a determined frown.

“But we don’t know where he is,” Spencer argued. “Who knows how long it’ll take? I’m getting my family, and then we can go after Jurgen.”

Ming stepped between them before Dr. Bravestone could argue back. “Spencer and I will get his family. The rest of you can start looking for Jurgen in the meantime.”

“Splitting up always ends badly,” Fridge pointed out.

“It won’t. Not with us,” Martha said with a smile. “We’ve got a lot on our side. We’ll get through this like we have before.”

Bethany beamed, bouncing on the balls of her feet. “Yeah! Go team us!”

“Alan, what do you think?” Sarah asked, hugging herself. “I don’t think I can do all this again.”

“You don’t have to,” Alan replied, placing his hands on her shoulder. “You can stay here, hold down the fort. Make sure this place actually  _is_ a safe place. As much as I hate this, I wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t help.”

Sarah nodded, though she didn’t look pleased. She leaned forward and kissed him. “Just be careful?”

Alan huffed in amusement. “I’m always careful,” he said with a smirk.

“Sounds like things are settled.” Ming looked at Spencer. “Come on. Let’s get this over with so we can help.”

Spencer nodded and they headed out.

Drumbeats echoed from the living room. Exchanging worried looks, everyone hurried into the room. 

“The map changed!” Bethany exclaimed, picking it up. More of the map had filled out.

“Level Two: Ambush,” Shelly read over her shoulder.

Fridge frowned. “I do  _not_ like the sound of that.”


	5. Chapter 5

Shelly and Bethany studied the map as the group left the Parrish mansion. He didn’t like to make assumptions about people, but Shelly was honestly surprised that Bethany appeared to understand the map. Of course, it could be due to the fact it was her home town, but perhaps she’d also picked up on his skills while she’d been him.

“Does your map indicate where we should go?” Dr. Bravestone asked.

“The writing is above a section of road,” Shelly replied, adjusting his glasses.

Bethany hummed in agreement, her eyes scanning the map. “Oh, wait, I know where that is! It’s an intersection near the center of town.”

“Based on what I’m seeing here…” Shelly looked away, calculations racing through his mind. “We’re roughly two miles away from there.”

“I think we’d be safer taking the cars there, right?” Fridge said, gesturing at the two remaining cars at the end of the driveway.

Alan shook his head. “Not necessarily. But it would be faster, so we might as well.”

They split into two groups of five. Alan led Dr. Bravestone, Fridge, Finbar, and Martha to his car, while Shelly, Jefferson, Bethany, and Ruby climbed into Alex’s. As they traveled down the road, once again Shelly found himself staring out the window.

Everything seemed peaceful, at first. But that soon changed as they got closer to the center of town. The car jolted and bounced over large cracks in the pavement, likely created by the elephants charging down one of the side streets they passed. One crashed into a power line, sending it toppling into a house. Shelly winced.

“Shit!” Alex shouted, right before the car swerved.

Shelly was yanked this way and that, smacking into first Bethany, then Jefferson. The squeal of the tires hurt his ears. And then suddenly the car was still.

“What the hell was that?” Jefferson asked Alex, rubbing the spot on his chin where Shelly’s helmet collided.

But Alex didn’t need to answer. Just ahead stood a group of men, standing in the middle of the intersection and spread out across the center green. 

“Who’re those guys?” Bethany asked, pressing closer to her window. She screamed and ducked just as a bullet hit the window, cracking the glass.

More bullets followed, smacking into the side of the car or hitting the windows again. One hit the weakened part from the first bullet, shattering the glass and whizzing past Shelly’s face by centimeters. 

“Drive!” Ruby shouted.

Alex reversed the car, spinning the wheel wildly to try and turn it. There was a loud pop, a hiss, and the car lurched to a stop. “They got a wheel!”

“Now what?” Shelly asked.

“I have an idea!” Bethany piped up, having to shout over the sound of gunshots. “Alex, can you turn on the radio?”

Alex opened and closed his mouth, a look of realization crossing his features. “Got it!” He turned a dial, pressed a couple of buttons, and then turned another dial. Music blared throughout the car.

“Ruby, maybe you can fight those guys off?” Bethany suggested. “Or at least distract them?”

Ruby smiled for the first time since they’d arrived. “Good thinking!” She unbuckled, threw open the door, and hopped out. 

Shelly, Jefferson, Bethany, and Alex got out quietly, leaving the doors open to allow more music to be heard. They ducked low behind the hood of the car.

_“Another One Bites The Dust,_ huh?” Bethany said, smiling at Alex.

Alex shrugged and grinned. “Seemed appropriate. Besides, who doesn’t like Queen?”

Shelly peered around the edge of the car. Ruby stalked towards the group of men, hips swaying to the beat. The man closest to her watched with a leer, gaze sliding over her body. Ruby smirked, sidling up to him. She delivered a swift uppercut to his jaw. He reeled, she grabbed his wrist, twisted, and shot one of the other men in the head. Ruby flipped the first man across her back, one of his friends shooting him instead of her.

“Stop right there!”

Ruby looked up from where she crouched. A man in a pinstripe suit and fedora stood over her, pistol pointed at her head. She glared up at him, but didn’t move.

“Where’s Bravestone?” the man demanded, voice a gruff rasp. 

“Switchblade!” 

The man—Switchblade—slowly turned to look. Dr. Bravestone approached from where Alan’s car had stopped several feet up ahead. Finbar, Alan, Martha, and Fridge had gotten out as well, though they stayed further back.

A nasty smirk curled Switchblade’s lip. “There you are.” He lifted his chin. “Not happy to have just my wife, eh? Got yourself two pretty pieces to play with?”

Dr. Bravestone stopped. His expression darkened. “That’s why you’ll never have Flame’s heart. She’s not a “piece”, and neither is Ruby.”

“Sure, sure. Then tell me, why did she marry me and not you? ‘Cause you were so good to her? Huh?” Switchblade spit on the ground and sneered. “You didn’t care then, and you only want her now ‘cause I have her. Until you stole her from me!”

Frowning, Dr. Bravestone shook his head. “I’ve done no such thing. It was Jurgen who—”

A roar interrupted the stand off. One of the men screamed as a lioness tackled him to the ground and tore into his throat. And another. And another. The whole pride of lions was attacking.

“Ruby, come on!” Bethany shouted, running towards her. Ruby leapt to her feet, grabbed Bethany by the arm, and hauled her away from the fight. They joined Shelly, Jefferson, and Alex by the useless car.

“Where are the others?” Alex asked, trying to see through the mayhem.

“They have Dr. Bravestone and Mouse, which means they have weapons. They’ll be fine,” Ruby said.

A clang of metal made them look up. One of the lions crouched on the hood of the car, claws flexed, staring them down with unblinking amber eyes. Her back end wiggled, preparing to pounce. 

“But  _we_ won’t be. Run!” Jefferson exclaimed.

The lion snarled, chasing after them. Adrenaline raced through Shelly’s veins, pushing him to run faster than he normally would. But he still lagged behind. He could hear the scrape of claws against the pavement behind him. He wasn’t going to make it. The lion would catch him and tear him to shreds.

A hand enclosed Shelly’s. Jefferson tugged him along, helping him run faster. Shelly’s legs ached, but he could keep going. Maybe they’d make it after all?

There was a roar right behind him.

The squeal of tires.

A loud  _thwack!_

Shelly looked over his shoulder to see an unknown car tip onto its side from the force with which it had hit the lion. Still, they didn’t stop running until they came to a little brick building and dove behind the bare, snow covered bushes. His chest heaved as he gasped for breath.

“Are you okay?” Jefferson asked.

“I’m… fine… thank you,” Shelly panted, slowly regaining his breath. “Especially… for helping me.”

Jefferson smiled. “No need to thank me. Of course I’d help you.”

Shelly was grateful the red that was likely spreading across his face could have been blamed on overexertion. He looked around, trying to gather his bearings. 

Ruby peered over the bushes. “I don’t see any lions, or any of Switchblade’s goons,” she announced. “But I don’t see Bravestone, Mouse, or any of the others, either.”

“We surely can’t be too far away,” Shelly said, taking out his map. “Bethany, do you know where we are right now?”

Bethany nodded and shifted to sit beside him, brushing snow off the knees of her pants. “We’re at the Library right now, so…”

“Here?” Shelly pointed at a little brick building on the map.

“Yep!”

“Okay, well, we can’t go back the way we came,” Shelly said. “We’d have to try and meet up with them elsewhere… It looks like this high school and the middle school are both in the middle of these roads which circle around from where the intersection was. Do you think they would head there?”

“It’s possible, but I guess it depends on what happened with the lions and Switchblade,” Alex remarked. 

Bethany hummed thoughtfully. “Oh! I know! I could just call Martha and let her know to go to the high school,” she said. Bethany pulled out her cellphone and held it up. "Oh good, I still have enough battery.”

A loud squawk was the only warning they had. A pelican swooped from the sky, snatched Bethany’s cellphone, and flew off.

“My phone!” Bethany cried out, eyes wide. She got to her feet, clearly prepared to chase the bird down, but it was already gone. “Damnit!”

“I’d offer to call, but I left mine back in the car,” Alex said with a grimace. “I guess we could always go back for it?”

* * *

“Go! Go! Go!” Grandpa Eddie shouted.

“Faster!” Ming demanded.

“I’m going as fast as I can!” Spencer shot back, speeding and rattling down the road. He could see the rhino in the rear-view mirror and it was gaining on them. They took a sharp turn down a side street, then another. The Parrish mansion came into view up ahead.

Spencer just managed to turn fast enough to skid into the driveway, causing the end of the stone fence to knock the side mirror clean off the car. He turned in his seat to look out the back window. The rhino came to a stop just outside the entrance to the driveway. It snorted and shook its head, pawed the ground, and then took off down the road.

“Oh good…” Spencer sighed, slumping in the seat. He smiled at Grandpa Eddie and Ming. “Looks like I was right about the check point thing.”

“You knocked the mirror off my car!” Grandpa Eddie complained, getting out to look at the damage. 

Spencer climbed out. “We can get it fixed later, Grandpa. We couldn’t fix getting stomped on by a rhino.”

Grandpa Eddie huffed, shaking his head. “At least Bob owes me a favor and I can get a discount,” he muttered, following Spencer and Ming to the front door.

It opened almost immediately, and Sarah ushered them inside. “That was close,” she said. “I’m so glad you were right about here being off limits.”

“Sarah? Little Sarah Whittle, that you?” Grandpa Eddie asked, squinting up at her before breaking out into a grin. “Oh yeah, I’d heard ya married that Parrish boy. Good for you.”

Spencer’s eyes widened. “You know her?”

“Wait, Eddie Gilpin is your grandpa?” Sarah asked, equally surprised.

“’Course I know her,” Grandpa Eddie said with a nod. “She and your dad were in the same grade. Shared some classes. They had a couple school projects together here and there, so sometimes she’d come over. And I knew her parents, too.” His brows rose. “Wait, wait, wait. So you and Alan have played the game, too?”

“Unfortunately,” Sarah replied, crossing her arms. 

Ming huffed. “Okay, good, we all know the situation now. Have you heard from anyone?”

Sarah shook her head. “Not yet.” She fiddled with her crystal necklace. “I’m starting to worry.”

Spencer ran his fingers through his hair. Grandpa Eddie hadn’t been able to contact his mom, and now his friends were out there in who knew what kind of danger. Well, at least he knew they were headed to the main intersection downtown. He turned to his grandpa. “You’ll stay here, right? It’s safe.”

“Bah!” Grandpa Eddie waved off his concern. “It might’ve been fun being a strong young guy again, but look at me! You don’t hafta worry about me goin’ out there if I don’t need to.”

Spencer smiled in relief. “Right. Ready to go, Ming?”

“I’ve been ready. Let’s go,” Ming retorted, turning and heading out the door.

Spencer waved to Grandpa Eddie and Sarah, then followed her. He just hoped everyone was still there, otherwise he had no idea where to look.

“Just don’t break any more of my car!” Grandpa Eddie called after them.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to those who are reading/leaving kudos/comments! It's nice to know people are liking this story. ^_^ Honestly, as someone who grew up in New Hampshire and who loves to play video games, it's tons of fun to write, lol.   
> Anyway, please enjoy this new chapter!

Having managed to lose the lions by a pizza place, Dr. Bravestone, Mouse, Alan, Martha, and Fridge found themselves outside of the Sir-Sav-A-Lot. The place was deserted, trashed cars both in and outside the lot.

“We got separated,” Martha said, looking around.

“Damn,” Fridge muttered. “Now how’re we gonna know where to go?”

“We’ll figure it out,” Dr. Bravestone assured them. “You three know this town. Where do you think your friends would go?”

Fridge shrugged. “I don’t even know. Depends on where the lions chased them.”

Martha’s eyes widened. “Wait, I could call Bethany!” She pulled out her phone and dialed. Bethany’s ringtone — _Juice_ by Lizzo — played from the speaker. And continued.  It sounded like it was getting louder.

“Is that a…?” Fridge trailed off, looking up at the sky.

“A great white pelican,” Mouse replied. “A genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before swallowing.”

The pelican landed on an abandoned car nearby, the muffled ringtone playing from inside its bill.

Alan glared at the pelican.  _“You.”_

Squawking, the pelican ruffled its feathers and tilted its head. It appeared to be smirking at him.

“It’s got Bethany’s phone.” Martha looked at Mouse. “You don’t think it hurt her, do you?”

“They can be aggressive, but I think maybe it just mistook her phone for a fish,” Mouse replied. He scratched his chin, squinting thoughtfully at the pelican. “We might be able to trade for it, if it doesn’t swallow the thing first.”

“Trading will work, if we can even get near it. But we actually need a fish,” Alan agreed, giving the pelican another dirty look. 

Dr. Bravestone nodded. “Then we’ll look for a fish. Are there any rivers near here we can fish from?”

“Yeah, there’s one not too far from here,” Fridge said, pointing in the general direction. “I don’t know what kinda fish it has, though.”

“It doesn’t matter.” Alan turned to Mouse. “Do you know how to distract it?”

“I do,” Mouse replied. “Why?”

Lowering his voice, Alan said, “If you can keep it distracted, I can get a fake fish from the store.”

Mouse gave the pelican a considering look. “They’re smart birds, but I think that could work.” He shrugged off his bag and handed it to Fridge. “Keep an eye on that.”

“Got it,” Fridge agreed. It was actually kind of nice to hold it again; being Mouse hadn’t been all bad, after all. 

Spreading his hands a little, Mouse approached the pelican. He made strange little grunting noises, which caused the pelican to shift and settle  more on the car . When he got a little closer, Mouse  made wide sweeping gestures . The pelican watched him for a moment before grunting back at him.

Alan took the opportunity to sneak around the cars and over to the front of the store. He slipped inside, unnoticed by the pelican.

“Can he actually talk to animals?” Fridge asked, looking over at Dr. Bravestone.

“He can,” Dr. Bravestone replied, crossing his arms. He had turned slightly so he could keep an eye on the road and on them. “To a degree. He seems better with some animals than others. Once, he told me that some just don’t want to listen.”

Fridge nodded. “Makes sense.”

Dr. Bravestone chuckled. “And some can be a little foul mouthed.”

“… Was that a pun?”

“He’s back,” Martha told them, tone quiet. 

Alan crept back across the parking lot, one of those tacky singing fishes tucked under his arm.

Mouse spotted him, and soon after so did the pelican. “He said he’s willing to trade the “ fish” for a  bigger  fish,” he said as Alan approached.

“Great,” Alan said, clearly not caring to question it. He held out the fish and inched toward the pelican.

The pelican eyed the fish, then Alan, and snapped his beak in warning. Alan paused. Mouse grunted at the pelican, and it grunted back. Mouse nodded and Alan moved closer. The pelican hacked up the phone and snatched the fake fish.

Alan grabbed the phone, tossed it to Fridge, and hurried towards the road. “Come on, it probably won’t fool him for long!”

Fridge handed the phone to Martha as they followed. “She had Alex’s number, maybe you can call him?”

“Yeah, good thinking.” Martha scrolled through Bethany’s phone until she found the number she needed. 

“Martha! Fridge!” 

Spencer and Ming slowed Grandpa Eddie’s car to a stop a few feet away, the window rolled down.

“Spencer! How did you find us?” Martha asked with a grin.

“Pure luck,” Spencer replied with a shrug. “I saw the intersection, then figured maybe you would’ve headed for the high school? Or it was at least worth a check. We just chose to go this way.”

Drum beats echoed from Martha’s hand.

“Sounds like it’s coming from Bethany’s phone,” Fridge said.

Martha looked down and her brows rose. “It’s… a riddle?” She frowned.  _“These_ _things_ _will make you lose your breath, break the coils, or catch your death.”_

“What the hell does that mean?” Fridge asked.

“I don’t know… But I’m going to call. Maybe one of them will know,” Martha said.

* * *

“Booyah! Got it!” Alex exclaimed as he strained to reach underneath the front seat of his car. He pulled out his ringing phone. “Huh. That’s weird.”

“What is?” Bethany asked.

“You’re calling me,” Alex said. He shrugged and answered. “Hello?”

Bethany frowned. “Pelicans can’t use the phone, though.”

“Lots of things are possible in Jumanji, but that would definitely be a first,” Jefferson said, shaking his head. Then again, if orangutans could be trained to fly a plane and shoot, maybe a pelican could be taught to use a phone.

“Yeah, we’re okay,” Alex said. He mouthed, “It’s Martha.”

Bethany breathed a sigh of relief.

“Uh, no we didn’t send a riddle… One sec.” Alex gestured at Shelly with his chin. “Is there anything new on the map?”

Shelly retrieved the map from his jacket and unfolded it. “It has!” He spread it out on the hood of the car. “Level Four: The Factory.”

“That’s the Parrish Shoe Company,” Bethany pointed out, excited. “Guess that’s where we gotta go next.”

“The Parrish Shoe Company,” Alex relayed. “Yeah… Yeah… Got it. We’ll meet you there.”

Several minutes later they found a mostly intact car which had skidded off the road. Ruby, Jefferson, and Alex managed to push it back onto the pavement, and Jefferson hot-wire d it. 

“I didn’t know you could do that?” Bethany said as they climbed in.

“It’s a little different to the cars back home, and from planes, but there’s enough similarity  that I could guess,” Jefferson replied, sliding his aviator shades on as he settled beside Shelly in the back. He smirked. “That, and I’ve always enjoyed messing with mechanics.”

Alex gave a little huff of amusement. “Yeah, I remember that being one of your strengths.”

After a few moments, Shelly spoke up, “You mentioned a riddle on the phone?”

“Oh yeah. Bethany can you check my phone? Martha texted it to me,” Alex replied.

“Sure.” Bethany took his phone, and after a couple moments found what she was looking for. “Oh, weird. Here it is:  _These_ _things_ _will make you lose your breath, break the coils, or catch your death.”_

“And Martha doesn’t know where it came from?” Jefferson asked.

“No. She was hoping we’d know,” Alex said. He took a sharp turn, just barely missing a  rampaging  hippo. “It doesn’t sound good, whatever it is.”

“It doesn’t,” Ruby agreed with a frown. 

“I feel like I should know what it is,” Shelly huffed, shaking his head. “I’ll think on it more.”

The afternoon sun peaked through the arches of the Parrish Shoe Company tower. Alex stopped beside Alan’s car, where everyone was waiting for them. 

Bethany got out and immediately ran to hug her friends. “I was so worried those lions got you guys!” she exclaimed.

“Same here,” Fridge said. “Glad to be wrong for once.”

Martha handed over her phone. “Uh, you might want to wash that. I don’t know how clean pelicans are.”

Bethany wiped the phone off on her pants before pocketing it. “Gross… How did you get it, anyway?”

“We tricked it with a fake fish,” Alan told her. “But we’ve got more important things to worry about. Like that riddle and what it has to do with my company.”

“I have a guess, but I don’t think anyone will like it,” Shelly said.

“What is it?” Dr. Bravestone asked.

Shelly shot Ruby an apologetic look. “I think it might be referencing a snake.”

“That… would work,” Mouse agreed. “A boa constrictor, python, or anaconda would coil around its prey and make it hard for them to breathe.”

Dr. Bravestone headed for the front steps. “Well, we won’t know for sure until we check,” he said. He paused, then turned. “We should have weapons. Just in case. Mouse?”

“Got it.” Mouse pulled a boomerang from his bag and handed it to Dr. Bravestone. “Who wants what? I’ve got a lot of options.”

“I’m good with a knife,” Alan said, holding out his hand. Mouse gave him a hunting knife. He gave it a little spin, nodded, and then went to unlock the doors.

Of course Ruby got her nunchucks, Ming a pair of sais that she tucked into her boots, Jefferson a pistol, and then turned to Shelly, who shook his head.

“I’d probably end up shooting one of you by mistake. I’m not a fighter,” Shelly said.

“Suit yourself,” Mouse replied.

“Alright, let’s go,” Dr. Bravestone said, and pushed open the doors.

They entered the dark factory, the forest green paint on the walls only making it worse. The wooden steps creaked as they climbed up them, echoing throughout the brick building. Reaching the top, they turned. Sunlight spilled in through the huge windows, over the machines, and stretched across factory floor. 

A muffled shout startled them. At the opposite end of the factory, a man stood in the shadows. 

“Hello?” Dr. Bravestone called out.

The man shifted. Or rather, the thing wrapped around him did. A head lifted from his shoulder, slitted yellow eyes glinting in the light. The giant snake hissed.

“Oh no, not again,” Bethany moaned, backing up despite the several feet of distance between them. 

Movement caught Jefferson’s eye, and his head snapped up. A second python was curled around a brick column, watching them. Further in the room, more snakes slithered along the lights and machines.

“It is snakes. I was hoping to be wrong,” Shelly said, having spotted them as well.

“Specifically a reticulated python,” Mouse added.

Ruby nodded. “Then that means I can still help. Pythons aren’t venomous.”

“No. But those cobras are,” Mouse said, pointing at the snakes that had just slithered out from under some shelves. He then pointed to some bright green snakes hanging from some of the lights. “And so are those boomslangs. They probably gathered in here because the machines were warm.”

Spencer looked around. “There has to be something we can do. We can’t just let that guy die.”

Mouse paced, observing the snakes. “Luckily, boomslangs aren’t aggressive unless provoked. So long as you don’t get near them, you’re fine. Those cobras, however, might be more of an issue. Sudden movement could make them attack.”

“Then maybe we can use that to our advantage,” Alan said. “Finbar, got anything in that bag you mind tossing?”

Dr. Bravestone nodded as Mouse rummaged through his bag. “Distract the cobras, and possibly scare off the boomslangs… Leaving us to try and cross without being attacked by the pythons.” He eyed the area. “Okay. I’ll take the center with Mouse and Jefferson. Ruby, Alan, and Ming will take the right, farthest from the cobras.” Dr. Bravestone turned to Shelly, Spencer, Fridge, Martha, and Bethany. “That means you five will be distracting the cobras, and any boomslangs that look ready to attack.”

“Well, I don’t have much in the way of things that can be thrown. Just these,” Mouse said, pulling out a bunch of screws, though what they were for Jefferson couldn’t guess. He handed them out. “But I think you guys should have weapons, too. Just in case.”

Mouse gave Fridge a considering look, then pulled a crowbar from his bag. “Not a traditional weapon, but it’ll work. Though, if you’re close enough to a cobra to use it, it’s probably too late.”

“I’ll take it. Better than nothing,” Fridge said, swinging the crowbar up to rest against his shoulder. “But I’ll be doing most of the throwing. I’ve got the best aim here.”

“Do you have any skills with weapons?” Mouse asked Martha.

Martha shook her head. “Not like this.” She gestured at herself with a half smile. “I did start learning aikido, though.”

“Hmm…” Mouse looked through his bag. He took out a long bamboo stick. “There. This shouldn’t be too difficult to use.”

“Wow, okay,” Martha said, taking it. She swung it through the air. “Yeah! This I can use. I hope.”

Spencer and Bethany were both given knives. 

“If something comes at you, use the pointy end,” Mouse said with a smirk. He turned and went to join Dr. Bravestone. “Ready.”

Jefferson fell in line behind Dr. Bravestone and Mouse. At the sound of several screws hitting the floor to the left, followed by very agitated hissing, they took the three steps down and started forward. He could see Alan leading Ruby and Ming down the right side, swinging his knife this way and that to deter any of the snakes. Boomslangs hung overhead, following their movement but not attacking. 

A shout from Fridge echoed behind them, followed by a clang. Then more tiny pings of screws bouncing across the floor. Jefferson didn’t look back, too focused on the boa constrictor draped in loops over the conveyor belt of the machine beside him. It lifted its head, tongue flicking in his direction. 

_“Hah!”_ Alan jumped forward, slashing at a python that had gotten too close. It hissed and reared back. Alan swung again, slicing its head clean off. 

One of the boomslangs hissed, uncurling enough to drop down in front of Ruby, hanging by its tail. Ming jumped, propelling herself from the wall at the snake. She cut it down with a sai, and the body collapsed to the floor.

“Thanks,” Ruby said. She kicked the body of the boomslang under a machine.

Ming nodded in reply.

It felt like they were taking forever to cross the factory. Of course, Jefferson knew it was so that they didn’t upset the snakes more than they already were, though he couldn’t help but worry about the man they were trying to save. He wasn’t struggling any more.

A yelp from Shelly had Jefferson spinning around, and he saw Martha smack away a lunging cobra. Weight hit Jefferson’s shoulder causing him to stumble. There was a sharp sting, and he cried out. Dr. Bravestone’s hand clamped down on the python’s neck and squeezed. It released Jefferson and Dr. Bravestone hurled it into the far wall.

“Are you okay?” he asked, ducking to look Jefferson in the eye.

Jefferson gave a pained hiss, grasping his left shoulder.  _“Shit,_ yeah. I’m fine. Keep going.”

“Pythons aren’t venomous. It’ll hurt, but you’ll be okay for now,” Mouse confirmed as they started walking again.

Finally, they made it to the other side. Mouse inched toward the reticulated python and the man, as the rest of them spread out. 

“Keep an eye out for any other snakes,” Dr. Bravestone said. “Mouse, do you need help with the python?”

“I’ve got it for now,” Mouse replied. He looked the python in the eye, then gave a quiet hiss.

Jefferson was even more on alert, pistol at the ready. The gun was a last resort. Dr. Bravestone’s boomerang zipped by, hitting a boa that had slithered out from the shadows of the shelves, and then returned to him. Jefferson glanced back at Mouse.

“That’s it… Calm down…” Mouse soothed, moving closer to the python. He hissed again, and the python hissed back. “Huh?”

The python hissed again. 

Mouse hissed back, sounding annoyed.

“What’s it saying?” Ming asked.

“It says it’ll give this man up if we give it a bigger meal,” Mouse translated. “Which isn’t happening.”

Dr. Bravestone tensed. “Can we kill it before it kills him?”

Mouse sighed. “We might have to try and hope for the best.”

“What can we do?” Ruby asked.

“Let’s see…” Mouse didn’t take his eyes off the python as he swayed from left to right. It watched him. “Ruby, Xander, you two flank it.”

Ruby and Dr. Bravestone did so. The python hissed, looking between them.

“Ming, can you get at it from above?” Mouse asked. “Strike it through the skull?”

Ming looked up at the ceiling. “I can.” 

She removed a grappling hook from her belt where it had been hidden, gave it a twirl, and swung it up where it connected to a steal beam. Ming tugged it, testing it, then started walking backwards. As the others distracted the python, she darted behind and around them. Her feet connected with the brick wall, and she ran up it, using the grappling hook to pull and swing herself up onto the beam. 

Jefferson couldn’t see what she was doing in the shadows. But he did see movement at his right. He dropped to the floor just as a second python struck, missing by inches. Jefferson kicked up, hitting the snake in the side, and using the momentum to whack it into the ground. He shot it in the head.

“Whoa! Whoa...” Mouse exclaimed, catching the first python’s attention again. “You got it handled, Seaplane?”

“Yeah, sorry,” Jefferson said. He grimaced and gripped his shoulder again. That move hadn’t agreed with him. Jefferson turned to see Ming slowly lowering herself from the beam.

Light glinted from the sai in her hand. The python raised its head at a particularly loud hiss from Mouse. Ming dropped, sheathing her blade in the python’s skull. Dr. Bravestone and Ruby rushed forward to grab the body of the huge snake, the dead weight causing the man in its coils to buckle. They hauled it off and it landed with a weighty thud on the ground.

Dr. Bravestone caught the man under the arms. “He’s alive,” he told them. Sure enough, the man gasped a few seconds later, sucking in much needed air. 


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading everyone! I hope you all enjoy this next chapter.

It took a while to make it back to the Parrish mansion, what with having to avoid several animals and even a swarm of large wasps that had attacked the car Alex drove. Shelly couldn’t stop shooting Jefferson concerned looks the whole time.

Everyone hurried into the mansion, with Dr. Bravestone carrying the man they’d rescued. While he was alive, he was also in a lot of pain.

“Who is this?” Sarah asked as she followed them into the living room.

“The water heater repair guy from my place,” Spencer explained. “His van was in my driveway. At least I think it’s the same guy—it’d be a big coincidence if not.”

Dr. Bravestone laid the man down on one of the couches. “He was being crushed by a python.”

Sarah’s hands flew to her mouth. “That’s awful!”

Finbar set his bag down by the couch and searched through it. He pulled out a medipack and opened it on the coffee table. Then he looked from the repair man to Jefferson. “I only have one of these.” Finbar turned to Sarah. “Mrs. Parrish, do you have first aid here? And needles?”

“We do.” Sarah left, then returned a minute later with a MediKit and a little clear box of needles. It was smaller than what Finbar had, but it seemed suitable. She also had some Ibuprofen.

Finbar nodded. “Are you any good at stitches?”

“I am,” Alan replied. “Had to teach myself back in Jumanji. But I took lessons later… just in case.”

“Good, then you can help Seaplane while Xander and I help this man,” Finbar said as he and Dr. Bravestone worked on helping the repair man out of his jacket and shirt.

“I may be able to help as well,” Shelly offered.

Alan shrugged and gestured for them both to follow him. “Any help is good help.” He led them into a large, white kitchen and had Jefferson sit at a small table by the windows. “Where did it get you?” Alan got a bowl of water and a cloth, setting both on the table before going back to the sink.

“My left shoulder,” Jefferson said. He eased off his jacket and set it beside him, then tried to unbutton his shirt. It was a struggle, however, with him only able to use one hand without being in too much pain.

Shelly was instantly at his side. “Here, let me.” He reached out and popped open the buttons one by one, trying to be careful. Once he’d gotten the shirt open he gently worked the sleeve off his shoulder. Shelly winced in sympathy, the bite looked awful. It was hard to even tell it was a bite from the way the skin had ripped and with the amount of blood coating it.

“It looks worse than it is,” Jefferson said, smiling up at Shelly.

Alan gave him some Ibuprofen and a glass of water. “You’ll want that.”

Jefferson lifted the glass in a silent cheers, then downed the medicine with it. Alan went and grabbed a lighter, then heated up the needle. “Shelly, was it? You can clean the bite with water while I do this. Then the peroxide.”

Shelly nodded and dipped the cloth in the water. As gently as he could, he patted at the bite, clearing away the dark red to reveal lightly tanned skin beneath. “I’m so sorry. If I hadn’t distracted you this wouldn’t have happened.” When he was certain he’d done what he could with the water, he grabbed the hydrogen peroxide from the kit.

Jefferson grunted and winced as the peroxide was applied. Still, he shook his head. “Not your fault. Don’t blame yourself.” He breathed deeply as the sting seemed to fade. Locking eyes with Shelly, Jefferson looked serious. “I mean it, alright?”

“There’s some vodka in the pantry,” Alan said, nodding at Shelly as he cut roughly what he needed of the thread.

“R-right.” Shelly found the pantry easily, and was grateful for the vodka being not only in plain sight but within reach. He came back with the bottle and handed it over.

Alan plucked a cotton ball from the kit, soaked it in the vodka, and swabbed the needle and thread with it. “Not the best, but it works.” He looked at Jefferson. “This is gonna hurt like hell.” A scream from the other room punctuated his statement.

Jefferson gave a weak chuckle. “Thanks for the honesty.”

Hands sure and steady, Alan began the stitching process.

“AH! Fuck! You weren’t kidding!” Jefferson exclaimed, his right hand curling into a fist on the table. His eyes screwed shut and he grit his teeth as Alan kept going.

Though he couldn’t look at what Alan was doing, Shelly was determined to help somehow, so he reached out and rested his hand on Jefferson’s. He could at least offer moral support. Shelly had always been good at that.

Jefferson cracked open an eye to look at him. His breathing eased up, and he managed a small, grateful half smile. Another groan of pain broke it. “How— _fuck_ —how long does this take?”

“Depends on if you interrupt me,” Alan retorted. He finished one line, tied it off, and started another. “It’s not too bad, though, so you’re lucky.”

Despite what Jefferson had said, Shelly still felt the guilt weighing in his chest and clawing at his throat. If he wasn’t so easily startled, Jefferson wouldn’t be sitting there in pain. He gave Jefferson’s hand a light squeeze. 

“Aaand… done,” Alan announced, tying off the last thread. He took the peroxide and another cotton ball and dabbed it over his handiwork. Alan unrolled some of the bandage, snipped it, and wrapped it around Jefferson’s shoulder. He taped it in place, then stepped back. “Good. You might not even have a scar after.”

“Might not?” Shelly echoed. “Then there’s a chance he could?”

Alan shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m not a doctor.”

“It’s fine. If it does, well, then it’ll be a good story to tell later,” Jefferson said with a cheeky grin.

Shelly sighed and shook his head, a small smile curling his lips. “I suppose if you’re saying things like that, you must be fine.” Still, he couldn’t help but fuss as he helped Jefferson back into his shirt and jacket, making sure he didn’t move his arm too much. 

When they returned to the living room, the repair man was propped up against some pillows on the couch. 

“Okay, not to sound ungrateful—’cause I am grateful—but what the hell is going on?” the repair man asked, looking at them all.

Spencer approached him. “That’d be a lot to explain, honestly. But you’ll be safe here,” he said. “Just… Were you at the Gilpin house yesterday?”

The repair man seemed like he wanted to ask more questions, then decided against it. He nodded. “Yeah, I was. And that’s where this whole shit went down!”

“Oh… Sorry about that.” Spencer rubbed the back of his neck. “That’d be my house. Do you know what happened to my mom?”

“Your mom?” The repair man sighed and thought for a moment. “Damn, sorry, kid. I don’t know, exactly. One minute she was there, the next, not. And I didn’t really stick around ‘cause a gorilla attacked me. A damn gorilla!”

Sarah crouched beside him and gently patted his arm. “Okay, well you’re safe now. Getting worked up will only make your injuries worse.” She stood. “I’ll make some chamomile tea. Some sleep might do you good.”

The doorbell rang.

“I’ll get it,” Alan said, leaving the room. Moments later he returned with Mr. Billingsley. 

“Nigel,” Dr. Bravestone greeted, walking over to him. “Did you find anything out?”

Nigel nodded. “Indeed I did,” he replied. “I was scouting the town when I saw someone heading into the Brantford High School. Which doesn’t sound like much, however he was chanting something. Once I figured out what he was saying, I came straight here.”

“What was he chanting?” Ruby asked.

“Ah, let’s see…” Nigel cleared his throat and recited the chant,  _“_ _A soothing song will earn you aid, from a poison the medicine’s made.”_

“Great, another riddle to solve,” Fridge complained, shaking his head.

Shelly ran the words over in his mind. “It doesn’t sound so bad. This one seems like it’s leading us to a medicine of a sort.”

“Yeah, but why would we need medicine?” Martha pointed out. “Wouldn’t it mean someone’s likely to get sick or hurt?”

Spencer ran his fingers through his hair. “I guess we can rule out snakes, though, right? They’re venomous, not poisonous.”

“That’s correct. It also rules out spiders, scorpions, and various other insects, as well as certain mollusks, corals, and cephalopods,” Finbar agreed.

Alan snorted. “That narrows it down to, oh, about a hundred other possibilities.”

Shelly took out his map and opened it. “Whatever the riddle refers to, we don’t have a choice but to find out. Level Four is at the school.”

The group found themselves outside the school just as the sun began to set, casting the building in a red-orange glow. 

“It’s weird being back here,” Bethany murmured. “I don’t think I’m ever going to stop having school nightmares at this rate.”

“Yeah, same,” Spencer agreed.

Martha nodded, also looking uncomfortable.

“Okay, but does anyone know how we’re getting in? The place is probably locked,” Fridge said.

Ming strode past them. “Then it looks like I finally get to do what I’m best at.” She crouched by the front door and pulled a lock pick from the folds of her shirt. Ming frowned in concentration as she wiggled the pick back and forth within the lock. There was a little click. “Ha! Got it.”

Pushing open the door, Ming stepped inside and held it for the rest of them. Once they were all in the let go and door clacked shut behind them, leaving them in gloom.

As Shelly’s eyes adjusted, he was quick to make out the shapes stretching through the hall before them. “Plants?”

Bethany sighed. “I’ll probably regret asking, but what’s so bad about plants? There’s gotta be something, they’re from Jumanji.”

“Lots of things. Like pollen,” Ming said, pressing her arm over her nose and mouth.

“Mouse, do you have any masks Ming and I can use?” Spencer asked. “Or maybe we should just wait outside?”

Ming scoffed. “I’m not sitting by and doing nothing.”

Finbar pulled the red bandana from his neck, and a blue bandanna from his bag. “This is all I have right now.”

Spencer and Ming took the bandannas and tied them around their faces.

“What else should we know about ‘em?” Fridge asked, eyeing the vines.

“Don’t touch them, don’t smell them, and if you can you probably shouldn’t even look at them,” Alan said, starting forward with his knife in hand. “If you see something yellow or something purple, get as far away as possible.”

Fridge shrugged and followed. “Sounds good to me.”

“I really don’t miss these things,” Alex said, voice barely above a whisper.

Shelly looked over at Jefferson as they headed down the hallway. “Are you sure about coming along?” he asked, glancing at his shoulder.

“I’m sure,” Jefferson said with a smile that was barely visible in the low light. He reached out, pressing a hand to Shelly’s arm. “I appreciate your concern, but really, I’m good.”

“Okay…” Shelly let the matter go. Besides, even injured, Jefferson was probably more helpful to everyone than Shelly was in this situation. 

The school was strangely warm, with a dampness to the air that was reminiscent of the jungle. As they turned a corner, it became clear why. Plants had grown up along the ceiling, breaking through tiles and likely the pipes beyond as steam sprayed down at them. Thick green vines wrapped around lockers while thinner ones dangled from the big ones on the ceilings, and various flowers bloomed across the windows.

“Where do you think we should look first? I assume you know the layout of this place?” Dr. Bravestone asked Spencer.

Spencer shrugged. “Well, this hall has the Home Ec, Art, and Music rooms. And down a little more is World History, French, Spanish, and AP English.”

“They have little windows in the doors, so we should be able to see inside… If the plants haven’t blocked them,” Martha said, stepping carefully over a vine.

Arriving at the first door—labeled Art—Alan peered through the little window. “Hard to tell, but I don’t see anything.” He tried the handle. It was jammed. Shaking his head he moved to the next door across the hall. “The Home Ec window is blocked.” He tried the door and it opened only a crack. Vines were keeping it from opening all the way.

When he got to the Music room, however, he was able to open the door. Alan led the way inside the beige room. Vines and large leafy plants covered the small bleachers set up near the back, and a stack of chairs had been toppled over by a crimson flower with long, pale pink stamen that had taken up residence on the wall. It seemed innocent enough, but none of them dared to get near it.

Alan opened a door into an office, and then into another small room that housed the instruments. “Clear.”

The next several rooms proved to be just as useless. 

“Maybe we should split up. Cover more ground,” Dr. Bravestone suggested as they left the French room.

Fridge turned. “Hell no! Splitting up is always a bad idea. Mystery shows, horror movies—actually it never ends well no matter what,” he protested, shaking his head. “Earlier today we were split up and that didn’t help. And we only just managed to make it work last time we were in Jumanji, and we had multiple lives to use.”

“I died twice, actually,” Alex added. 

Fridge gestured at him as if to say, “See?”

A door slammed somewhere in the distance.

They hurried in the direction it came from. Shelly was starting to lag behind again, and he could feel the sweat dripping down his forehead. He silently cursed his lack of endurance. Mouse, who was beside him, didn’t look as though he was doing much better.

_“Stop!_ Nobody move!” Alan shouted, flinging his arm out to keep them from running past.

Shelly peered over his shoulder and saw why.

A huge green pod had emerged from the undergrowth infesting the hall. The pod unfurled, exposing the bright yellow and orange insides. Fast as lightning, a vine shot from the center. Alan tackled Bethany out of the way with a shout. The vine retracted, only to lash out again. It wrapped around Ming’s foot and she toppled over.

Ming struggled, twisting and clawing at the floor as she was dragged towards the mouth of the pod. “Get this thing off me!”

“A machete! Or an axe!” Alan called out.

Finbar pulled a machete from his bag and tossed it to Dr. Bravestone, who caught it and swung it down on the vine in one fluid movement. The pod let out a weird shriek as its vine was severed. 

Ming scrambled to her feet, bandanna askew from being dragged over a large vine on the floor. She opened her mouth to say something, just as the pod exhaled a cloud of pollen and seeds. “Shit…” she gasped, and collapsed.


	8. Chapter 8

They ran back through the halls, following Fridge who was carrying Ming. “The nurse’s office is this way,” he threw over his shoulder. Turning back to the hall near the front entry, Fridge pushed through the front office door, scooted around a desk, and managed to yank open the door labeled Nurse.

“Spencer, is there anything in here we can use?” Martha asked as Fridge placed Ming down on the single cot.

“I don’t know! I don’t think so! I only had to come here once for allergies when we went hiking during P.E. in 9th grade,” Spencer said, frantically looking through cabinets and drawers. “But it’s different because mine’s asthma related. I don’t know what Ming’s problem is.”

Jefferson turned to Mouse. “Do you have anything in your bag that could help?”

“No, sorry. I’m a zoologist, not a botanist,” Mouse said, shaking his head.

Ming’s breathing was growing more ragged, and she grasped at her chest.

“There’s nothing here!” Spencer threw his hands up in defeat. “What do we do?”

“The riddle!” Shelly exclaimed.

They turned to look at him.

“ _A soothing song will earn you aid, from a poison the medicine’s made._ Remember?” Shelly clarified. “Maybe one of the pods can be made into a medicine.”

“Right!” Martha said with a nod. “And a song will calm it down! At least, it should. We did experiments in science one year, seeing if music had an effect on the growth of plants.”

Dr. Bravestone pointed at Spencer. “You should stay here and keep an eye on Ming. For both of your safety. The rest of us will deal with the pod.”

Bethany opened her phone and frowned. “I don’t have a signal and the battery’s almost dead. I can’t play any music.”

“I can play the guitar,” Jefferson offered as they rushed from the room. “It might not be as good with my arm like this, but it could be enough.”

“Good. It’s worth a try,” Dr. Bravestone said.

“… I can sing.”

Jefferson looked at Shelly with raised eyebrows.

“A little,” Shelly amended. “If that would possibly help.”

“It couldn’t hurt,” Jefferson said with a smile.

They stopped at the music room to grab a guitar before making their way back to the hall with the pod. Except it was nowhere to be seen.

“Now what?” Bethany asked. “Do we have to find the pod  _and_ whoever’s running around in here?”

“While looking for one, we might find the other,” Alan replied, stepping around the nearly hidden hole in the floor that had once housed the pod.

Fridge looked down into the hole as he passed it. “It could just be in the basement. There’s boilers and shit down there somewhere, and if these plants like heat, it’d probably go there.”

“That makes sense,” Shelly said. “How do we get there?”

“We’re headed in the right direction, anyway. The door to it is in the same wing as the gym,” Martha said.

“Then let’s keep going,” Ruby said, hopping over the hole to catch up to Dr. Bravestone and Alan. “The sooner we deal with both problems, the better.”

They continued through the school on high alert, keeping an eye out for more pods and the guy. Jefferson hoped Ming could hang on long enough for them to make the medicine, and that they even had the right idea in the first place. 

“Hey! Someone just went into the gym!” Bethany exclaimed.

“Do we go after them?” Fridge asked.

Alan shrugged and kept walking. “Might as well.”

Pulling open the blue double doors revealed exactly what Jefferson had hoped they wouldn’t find. The gym was completely transformed into a jungle. Trees, vines, bushes, and flowers grew everywhere, covering the room from floor to ceiling. It was still possible to see to the other end, but only just. The plants had gathered mostly at the center, surrounding and protecting a big tree with purple fruit dangling from its branches. A Jumanji Berry tree.

A man was hacking at the vines a few feet away with a fire axe.

“Hey!” Fridge shouted.

The man turned. His brown eyes were wild, haunted, his brunette hair was shaggy, and his broad chin sported patchy facial hair. Beyond that, the clothes he wore were noticeably too small and ripped in several places.

“No way…” Alan took a step forward. “I… I think I know him.”

Bethany looked up at him. “You do?”

“Peter Shepherd, is that you?” Alan called out.

“Huh? Peter?” the man replied, thick brows furrowing. His frown deepened, he shook his head and grit his teeth. Suddenly he straightened himself and sneered.“No! Who are you to speak to Jurgen without invitation?”

“Whoa…” Fridge muttered. “I think this dude’s lost it.”

“Who’s Peter?” Martha asked.

Alan looked at them. “Remember I said it was two kids who helped Sarah and me finish the game? Judy and Peter. But I don’t get how this happened… They didn’t remember the game… But this explains why their parents quit and moved.  They said he ran away, though… ” Shaking his head, he stepped forward. “Peter, it’s me, Alan Parrish.”

Peter hesitated to speak, several emotions flickering over his face. “Alan? I don’t know that name.”

“Yeah, you do. Your parents worked for my company,” Alan said, his tone gentle. “They, you, and Judy were always welcome at our home. And when Sarah and I had our son, you were like a big brother to him.” 

“Judy…” Peter’s grip tightened on the axe. His gaze dropped to the axe in his hand, expression becoming distant. Then he shook his head, free hand going up to tangle in his hear. “I don’t…” 

“Peter, you somehow must have gotten sucked into the game,” Alan told him. “You don’t remember, but it happened to me, too. You don’t belong in Jumanji.”

Peter paced on the huge vine. “What game?” he demanded, tone changing again. Peter turned and thrust his axe in their direction. “Jumanji is my home! I own it! It’s mine! Once I get back I’ll take the Falcon Jewel again and nothing can stop me!” His gaze landed on Dr. Bravestone. “Especially not you. Once I destroy this tree, my weakness will be gone.”

“You’re not Jurgen,” Alan insisted. “You’re Peter Shepherd, and you’re free now! Brantford is your home.”

“Alan, I don’t think it’s worth it. He’s confused,” Spencer said.

Peter turned and began cutting at the vine again, clearly done with them. 

“We have to stop him,” Dr. Bravestone told them. “He’s not Jurgen, but he’s right in that the Jumanji Berry is his weakness. If he destroys it, we might not be able to stop the real Jurgen.”

“I can knock him out,” Ruby offered. “Then we can focus on the berry and getting a cure for Ming.”

Peter managed to break away a few smaller vines. He cleared out some flowers and swung at a thick vine curling around the Jumanji Berry tree.

“You’d better act fast,” Dr. Bravestone said.

Ruby ran up a mound of roots and jumped, grabbed a vine, and swung back. She kicked off a wall of plants and shot forward with a flip. Her boot collided with Peter and they tumbled to the ground. 

Peter threw her off him and reached for the axe that had been knocked from his grasp. Ruby grabbed him by the back of his shirt, halting him. He twisted, trying to kick her off. She dodged and drove down with her elbow, right into his crotch. Peter howled in pain. 

Ruby made to grab his neck, but the vines below them heaved. She stumbled backwards, lost her footing, and landed on her ass. Peter got to his knees. He grasped the ax and slowly got to his feet. 

Dr. Bravestone pulled his arm back, boomerang in hand.

A big red flower bloomed from one of the vines above Peter and Ruby. Peter looked up just as the petals closed around him. He screamed.

“No!” Alan ran forward, only to be stopped by Dr. Bravestone. 

Ruby jumped up and ran. Purple flowers popped up in front of her.

“Duck!” Alan shouted.

Ruby listened, bending back just as a barb flew from the flower straight at her face. More purple flowers grew as she ran.

“Those barbs are poisonous,” Alan said. 

Spencer’s brows rose. He turned to Jefferson and Shelly. “Quick, make some music!”

Jefferson winced, shoulder throbbing as he fumbled with the guitar. He strummed a note. The tuning was a little off, but he had an idea of what he could play. “Shelly, if you know this song, sing it.” And then he played.

Shelly’s eyes widened in recognition. He nodded and as the notes progressed, he sang.  _“All our times have come… Seasons don’t fear the reaper, nor do the wind, the sun and the rain…We can be like they are…”_

“Wow,” Jefferson breathed. Shelly had a wonderful voice. 

“Jumanji has  _Don’t Fear The Reaper_ ?” Alex muttered. 

_“… Don’t fear the reaper… Baby take my hand… Don’t fear the reaper… We’ll be able to fly… Don’t fear the reaper… Baby I’m your man…”_ Shelly continued.  _“La… la, la, la, la...”_

“I think it’s working,” Mouse said.

Though Jefferson didn’t stop playing, he could see Mouse was right. The purple flowers had stopped shooting barbs at Ruby. They’d even turned towards them, as if listening to the music. Feeling more confident, he joined Shelly in the song.

“ _Valentine is done… Here, but now they’re gone… Romeo and Juliet, are together in eternity…”_

It hadn’t been obvious until it was gone, but it seemed a tension left the room. The red flower retreated into the depths of the “jungle” and the vines around the Jumanji Berry tree fell away.

“Keep singing,” Dr. Bravestone instructed.

_“… men and women everyday…”_

_“Just like Romeo and Juliet…”_

_“40,000 men and women everyday…”_

_“Redefine happiness…”_

_“Another 40,000 everyday…”_

_“We can be like they are…”_

“Alan, you said the purple flowers have poison barbs?” Dr. Bravestone asked, eyeing the flowers.

“Yeah, they do,” Alan replied. His attention, however, was on where the red flower had disappeared. 

Dr. Bravestone nodded. “Ruby! While they’re calm, pick the purple flowers!”

_“Don’t fear the reaper… Baby take my hand… Don’t fear the reaper… We’ll be able to fly… Baby, I’m your man…”_

Ruby grasped one of the purple flower’s stems and managed to twist the flower off below the swell of it. 

“I’ll get the berries, don’t stop singing until we’re both back,” Dr. Bravestone said, heading out into the gym. He managed to get to the tree without incident, and climbing it was just as easy.

Jefferson ended the last notes of the final break as Dr. Bravestone and Ruby returned with their prizes.

“How do we turn the poison into a medicine?” Bethany asked, frowning at the purple flowers. 

“We could go to the chemistry lab? There could be useful things there,” Martha pointed out.

Alan nodded, tearing his gaze away. “Good idea. I’m not an expert, but I did have to use some plants to heal myself while stuck in that jungle. That, and Sarah was into all these holistic medicines from the first timeline. I’ve picked up some things.”

“Lead the way,” Dr. Bravestone said.

The group made their way back through the halls and into the Chemistry classroom. There were a few vines and ferns growing within, but it seemed otherwise clear. Ruby dropped the dead flowers on a table, while Alan looked through the cupboards in the back.

“Let’s see…” Alan muttered. He gathered together a scalpel, metal tray, and some glass beakers. Using the scalpel, he cut into the base of one of the flowers, exposing the poisoned barb within. “What we don’t know is whether the poison from the barb will help, or if it’s another part of the plant.”

Shelly moved closer to get a better look. “A colleague of mine, Professor Willis, taught chemistry. I recall her mentioning once that, in  _very_ small doses, some poisons actually help numb pain. So perhaps, with a small enough dose, both options could be tested.”

“We don’t really have a choice,” Alan replied, looking at the barb. 

Martha approached, placing two mortars and pestles on the table. “Here, this should help.”

Alan nodded and dropped the barb in one. He plucked a couple of petals and placed them in the other. “One of you can grind the petals,” he said, already attempting to do the same with the barb.

Dr. Bravestone handed off the berries to Mouse and stepped up to the task, grinding them down to dust with quick efficiency. “Now what do you suggest?”

“Water dilutes quite a bit,” Shelly said, filling one of the beakers with a little bit of water. “Perhaps that’d be the safest route, especially if Ming is meant to ingest this.”

The dust was dumped into the water, turning it a pale lavender. 

Alan finished with the barb and grimaced. It had broken into pieces, with clear liquid seeping out around them. He looked through the cupboards again, and returned with a coffee filter. Holding it over an empty beaker, he poured the contents of the mortar into the filter. Alan then gave the filter a squeeze, causing the liquid to drip out of the bottom and into the beaker. He set the filter aside and added a bit of water to the beaker.

“It doesn’t look like much,” Fridge commented, raising an eyebrow.

“All that matters is that one of these works,” Dr. Bravestone said. “I have a feeling we’ll only get one chance.”

They took the beakers and hurried to the nurse’s office. Spencer sat on the end of the cot watching Ming with worry, but at their arrival he looked up.

“Did you find anything?” he asked.

Alan approached with the beakers. “A maybe cure, or a maybe poison. But we don’t have much of a choice.” He looked at the beaker that had the barb’s poison in it. “Based on the riddle, I’d bet this one. Any one got any objections?”

Nobody spoke up.

“Beaker number two it is. Can you sit her up?” Alan asked Spencer.

Spencer carefully eased Ming into a sitting position. Her eyes fluttered, but didn’t open. Alan opened her mouth with one hand, and tipped the liquid into her mouth with the other. She swallowed reflexively once it hit her tongue. 

The wall clock’s ticking seemed to grow louder as the seconds passed. 

A minute.

Two minutes.

Ming gasped, eyes shooting open. She jolted up, coughing hard and trying to catch her breath.

“Whoa, it’s okay!” Spencer rubbed her back. Looking up at Alan, he asked,  _“It’s okay right?”_

Alan shrugged.

“I’m”—Ming coughed again—“I’m fine!” Her breathing calmed a little, and she pushed at Spencer’s face. “You’re too close!”

Spencer backed off. “Sorry! Sorry.”

“Ming, are you feeling better?” Dr. Bravestone asked.

Ming looked up at him. She nodded. “Thank you.” Ming’s gaze swept across them and a small smile appeared. “All of you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Song: Don't Fear The Reaper by Blue Oyster Cult
> 
> Note: I'm not a scientist nor do I know anything about medicine and poisons beyond a brief google search. Don't do anything these idiots did in real life.


	9. Chapter 9

They sat in the grand dining room of the Parrish mansion, staring at the Jumanji Berry on the table.

“So what’s this?” Grandpa Eddie asked, squinting at it behind his glasses.

“The Jumanji Berry. We used it in the game before, remember?” Spencer replied. “To stop Jurgen.”

Grandpa Eddie rubbed his chin. “Oh yeah… Okay, that’s why it looked familiar.” He nodded slowly. “So why do we have it here?”

“To stop Jurgen again,” Martha said patiently.

His brows rose. “Jurgen’s here?”

“Yes, I told you that before,” Spencer said.

“… Right.”

“Anyway,” Alan interrupted, “how do we stop him with this? Is he allergic to it?”

Spencer scratched his head. “I don’t know? I just smashed it into his chest and then I was able to knock him out of a blimp.” He gave an awkward chuckle. “Something tells me it won’t work like that a second time.”

“You’re right. He knows I know his weakness,” Dr. Bravestone agreed. “And that means he’ll be expecting me to use it against him again.”

“But what makes it a weakness of his?” Martha asked. _“Is_ he allergic? Or is it poisonous?”

Dr. Bravestone shook his head. “I don’t know. If I had to guess, I’d say he’s allergic to it, since we’ve all been able to handle it without any problems. However, I wouldn’t recommend eating it. For many reasons.”

“Oh! What if we use it like that, though?” Bethany suggested. “We put it in a drink or his food, he drinks or eats it, and then _boom!_ Problem solved!”

Fridge looked at her as thought she’d grown a second head. “I never thought I’d hear you suggest poisoning someone.”

Bethany shrugged. “Why work harder when you can work smarter, right?”

“… Remind me never to piss you off,” Fridge muttered.

“I like that idea,” Ruby said, leaning back in her chair with her arms crossed. “If we can find where he’s holed up, he’s probably got servants that are getting him food, so we can sneak it into something.”

“I’ve always preferred an honorable fight,” Dr. Bravestone protested, frowning. “That seems a cowardly way to go about solving this.”

“It’s the smart way,” Alan corrected, leaning forward with a serious look. “Sure, it’s nice in movies and books and _video games_ to act the noble hero, but this is Jumanji. This is real lives at stake. Are you saying you’d put honor over the lives of an entire town? An entire world?”

Dr. Bravestone blinked, taken aback. “… No. You’re right. That would be incredibly selfish of me.” He looked away, eyes smoldering. “This fight is bigger than just me.”

Shelly sighed. “We still need a proper plan to even get the berry into his food.” He tapped his fingers against the table top. No matter what they did, the situation was dangerous. “We can’t disguise ourselves again, Jurgen knows who we are.”

“That complicates things,” Jefferson agreed with a nod.

“But Jurgen doesn’t know who _we_ are,” Alex said, gesturing at himself, Spencer, Martha, Fridge, Bethany, and Alan. “So one—or a couple—of us could sneak it in.”

Shelly pulled out his map and unfolded it on the table. “The map looks complete. Level Five: Battle Royale. It’s in what looks to be a cemetery.”

“Battle Royale?” Fridge echoed. “So, does that mean we actually have to fight him?”

“I guess we’ll find out when we try poisoning him first. Jumanji doesn’t like cheaters, so if it considers that cheating, we’ll know,” Alan replied with a shake of his head. “You can only hope it’ll be like last time, and not something worse.”

“That’s comforting,” Martha remarked.

“Okay, so what do we do first?” Shelly asked. “We need a proper plan.”

“Obviously we’d get the down low on ‘em,” Fridge said. He looked over the map. “Watch ‘em to see what kind of set up they’ve got, where they bring in the food, what the guards are doing, that sort of thing. Then, when we know we won’t get caught, sneak in the berry.”

Jefferson looked at the berry. “It’s pretty big. Do you think it’ll have the same effect all cut up?”

“We don’t really have any other options,” Spencer said. “Unless we just go straight to fighting, which seems a lot more dangerous.”

“Then it’s decided?” Dr. Bravestone asked, looking at them all. “You all agree to this plan?”

They did.

* * *

Despite more protests from Fridge, the group split. Ming and Alan had decided to go to the cemetery and scout the place during the night. All of them going would have proved too big of a risk, increasing the odds of one of them getting caught. Alan would report to Dr. Bravestone every twenty minutes, and if he missed a report, they were to assume things went wrong and they would go after them.

Which meant everyone else got to rest for the night.

Theoretically, of course. Jefferson wasn’t sure if he could rest, despite how tired he was and how his shoulder ached. Then again, maybe it was because his shoulder was bothering him that he couldn’t sleep. 

Jefferson made his way down to the kitchen, hoping perhaps getting a glass of water would help. 

“Couldn’t sleep either?”

Jefferson turned. Alex was sitting at the little table by the window, with his own glass of water. “Not really, no.”

Alex nodded, but he didn’t say anything.

For a moment, Jefferson stood by the sink, glass of water in hand. He walked over to the table and sat across from Alex. “So… twenty years?”

“I had a feeling you’d ask,” Alex said with a grin. It faded and he rubbed at his face. “Yeah. I got sucked into the game when I was sixteen. And I had no clue how much time had passed until Bethany, Spencer, Martha, and Fridge found me. They saved me. Bethany even gave up her second to last life for me.”

Jefferson’s brow furrowed. “How did you not know how much time passed?”

Alex shrugged. “I was you, remember? You didn’t age, I didn’t age.” He chuckled. “I don’t even know if that’s right, I’m honestly just guessing.”

“I remember being stranded in the jungle for almost a month,” Jefferson said, looking down at the table. He slid the glass back and forth between his hands. “And the strangest thing is, there was a treehouse with Alan Parrish’s name carved into it. That’s where I stayed.”

“Same here,” Alex replied. “I thought I’d been in there a month or two.”

Jefferson sat back in his chair. “What happened when you got out? You and Alan have mentioned time travel a lot. How did that work?”

Alex spread his hands and shook his head. “Again, I don’t know. We beat the game, and then suddenly I was back home in my room. Sixteen again.” He folded his arms on top of the table. “I convinced my dad to donate the game along with other old junk to the school like he’d done in the other timeline, apparently. I figured if that’s how they found me the first time, the game needed to go back to the school. I had no clue if it’d work, though, or that I’d ever see any of them again. But I did.” Alex’s smile was small, genuine, and a little sad.

“So…” Jefferson tilted his head. “Now people you knew when you were sixteen, are twenty years younger than you.”

It wasn’t a question. A lot was unsaid, but neither of them needed to.

“Yeah.” Alex sighed, looking out the window at the half moon. “It’s… confusing. But I’m glad I met them.” He returned his gaze to Jefferson. “How did it work out for you? Did _you_ almost die by mosquito?”

Jefferson grimaced. “I did. If Shelly hadn’t given me CPR, there wouldn’t have been time for Mouse to give me a cure for the disease the thing spread.”

“Huh.” Alex smiled. “It’s weird how similar, but how different our experiences are. I’d say I’m curious as to how that works, but I’d almost rather not look too much into it. Ignorance is bliss, sometimes.”

Jefferson laughed. “True.”

Finishing their water, they then headed upstairs and went their separate ways. The Parrish mansion had more than enough rooms for everyone, having apparently housed several servants at one point in history. It was a little too big, in Jefferson’s opinion. He had to wonder how Sara and Alan could live in a place so large with just the two of them. Not that it was any of his business.

A dim light seeped under a door and out into the dark hall. Jefferson paused. That was Shelly’s room. Apparently it was more than just Alex and himself that were having trouble sleeping. Jefferson was curious, but he also didn’t want to bother Shelly either. Curiosity won out. He knocked.

The door cracked open a moment later, and Shelly peered out at him. His eyes widened and his brows rose. “Jefferson?”

“Hey,” Jefferson replied with a smile. “You alright? I saw the light from under the door.”

“Oh…” Shelly blushed, and stepped back, allowing Jefferson to step into the room. It was small, with a single bed and a dark wood dresser, neither of which looked used beyond where Shelly had clearly been sitting. A simple brass lamp sat atop the dresser. “I didn’t wake you did I? I know you’re right across the hall…”

Jefferson shook his head. “I was already up, and I only just noticed it.” He shrugged, then winced. He had to stop jostling that shoulder.

“Is it your shoulder?” Shelly asked, shutting the door and returning to his side.

He wasn’t wearing the helmet, his jacket, or even his waistcoat or bow tie. Jefferson wasn’t sure he’d ever seen Shelly look so casual. “Hm? No. Maybe a little, but mostly just had a lot on my mind.”

“Ah. Yes, there’s a lot to think about,” Shelly said, going to sit on the bed.

Jefferson leaned his back against the wall across from him. “Anything you wanna talk about?”

Shelly gave a quiet laugh. “I’d have to know where to even begin.” He shook his head. “I think it’s just this whole situation, really. And I’m worried about Ming and Alan. And about whether or not this plan will really work, or if it does will we really get back to our world?”

Jefferson wished Shelly would laugh more. It was such a nice sound, and the way his eyes and nose crinkled was cute. He moved from the wall and sat beside Shelly. “I think it’ll all work out. With all our skills and knowledge? We’re a great team,” Jefferson replied. Well, most of their skills and knowledge. Jefferson’s skills hadn’t been needed much.

“That does make me feel better,” Shelly agreed. A determined glint sparked in his eyes. “I shouldn’t be so negative. We do have an advantage, after all. If we could defeat Jurgen in his own fortress, we can certainly stop him here.”

“Exactly.” Jefferson nodded. He was glad Shelly felt better about the situation.

Shelly smiled at him. “Thank you. I…” He trailed off, looking away. His smile remained, though it was shy. “You’re a good friend.”

“Hey.” Jefferson leaned forward a little, catching Shelly’s eye. “So are you.”

Though Shelly’s expression brightened considerably, there was something a little off. “I’m so happy to hear that. It means quite a lot.”

Jefferson wanted to stay and talk, he could have listened to Shelly talk for hours. Or sing. Both would have been even better. Still, it was late, and they had a lot to do the following day. Jefferson stood. “Well, now that you feel better, hopefully you can get some sleep.”

“Oh, yes, I think it will be much easier,” Shelly replied, standing as well. “And I hope you’ll be able to as well.”

“Yeah. This was probably exactly what I needed.” Jefferson stepped into the hallway. “Thanks for talking with me.”

Shelly’s cheeks went pink again. “Oh, yes, of course. Any time.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who's reading and leaving comments/kudos! It's nice to know people are liking this. :) I hope you all enjoy this next chapter, too.

Bethany kept her head down, mimicking the other servants that slunk around Jurgen’s camp. It had been decided that, since she’d been able to think on her feet and keep up the act of being one of the Brother’s Kebabic, she should be the one to sneak inside. Ming had knocked out a serving girl with a dart, and given Bethany her drab brown dress. Bethany felt a little bad about that, but it had to be done.

She glanced over at where Alan stood by the eastern fence, posing as a guard—Ming had a worrying number of sleeping darts. Bethany made her way towards the cooking fire, the diced Jumanji Berry hidden within the pocket of her apron.

“You!”

Bethany startled, turning to see a stern older woman in a similar outfit approaching. “Me?”

“Yes, you. Who else?” the woman snapped. “What are you doing?”

“Oh…” Bethany blinked. “I was just checking Jur—Master Jurgen’s breakfast. It didn’t look like anyone’s like, checked on it in a while, and I didn’t want it to burn. He’d be really mad if it did, right?”

The woman stared her down.

Bethany tried to keep her breathing steady.

“You’re right,” the woman agreed with a single, sharp nod. “That Ilse is going to get herself killed one of these days.” She shook her head, looking stressed. The woman glanced back down at Bethany. “Good work. Keep it up.”

As the woman left, Bethany gave a sigh of relief. She strode over to the giant pot—if you didn’t want to be noticed, you had to act like you belonged—and peered inside. Bethany had no clue what the meal was, and she didn’t really care. She took the pieces of berry from her apron and dropped them in.

Deed done, Bethany gave the pot a few stirs. It would be a total waste of time and effort if someone noticed the berry floating on top. Satisfied the berry was properly mixed in, Bethany hurried off to join a group of serving girls setting up a table that looked as though it had been stolen from the Ramunto’s Pizza down the street.

While she helped place various chairs, Bethany looked over at Alan again. She caught his eye and flashed a quick thumbs up. Alan turned away, and Bethany hoped he’d seen her signal.

A commotion started up on the opposite side of the cemetery several minutes later. Bethany frowned. That wasn’t right. Guards rushed past the table carrying their swords, axes, and weapons Bethany didn’t know the name of but definitely didn’t like the look of. Alan passed her and she shot him a confused look. He shook his head.

So he didn’t know what was happening either.

There was a high-pitched whistle. Bethany’s eyes widened as something large arched through the sky.

_B O O M!_

Flames erupted into the air along with a burst of snow, the explosion shaking the ground. Bethany’s scream mixed with those of the other serving girls as they tried to keep their footing. Black smoke billowed over the gravestones. She clapped her hands over her nose and mouth and stumbled out of the way and behind a nearby tree.

“What in the hell is going on!?” Jurgen the Brutal stormed down the hill from his tent, the furs of his cloak flapping about his legs. There was a nasty scar covering half his face that hadn’t been there before. He snagged the arm of one of the men running by him, hauling him back like he was nothing but a rag doll. “What is this!?”

“A surprise attack, my lord!” the man replied. “They used a rocket launcher!”

Jurgen tossed the man aside and pulled an axe from the sheathe at his belt. “It must be Dr. Bravestone,” he growled. “Go get the woman. I want him to see her die.”

The man bowed and hurried off.

Bethany didn’t know what to do. None of what was happening had been part of the plan. She needed to get out to let the others know that things had changed. Bethany left the cover of the tree and ran for the now clear side of the cemetery.

And almost ran straight into a guy.

“Watch it, girl!” the scruffy man barked. “Unless you want to be hyena food.”

Bethany took several steps back as the chained hyenas the man had leashed snapped at her and growled, chains rattling. “No! Sorry!”

The man ignored her, leading them past. “Stupid bitch,” he muttered.

It took a lot of willpower not to fire back a retort. “Rude,” Bethany mumbled once he was out of earshot. She continued towards the eastern gate of the cemetery. To her relief, there were no longer any guards there. _Thank you video game logic,_ Bethany thought as she slipped out through the gate.

Snow crunched loudly beneath her boots, but she no longer needed to be sneaky. Bethany rounded a small bunch of evergreens and bare birches and came to a stop.

“What happened?” Alex asked, phone in hand already.

“Some crazy person just shot a rocket launcher at the camp!” Bethany exclaimed, gesturing back the way she’d come. “I got the berry in, but I don’t know what’s going on. Alan’s still in there pretending to be a guard.”

Alex pressed a button on his phone and raised it to his ear. “… Spencer. Yeah. Yeah, I know about the explosion—listen. Bethany got the berry in the food, but someone fired a rocket launcher at the camp.”

Bethany rubbed her cold hands together as she waited. She hoped someone had an idea.

“Switchblade?” Alex asked, brows raising. “The guy from earlier? Yeah… Okay…” He hung up.

“So?” Bethany asked.

“You have to go back in,” Alex replied. “Dr. Bravestone plans to deal with Switchblade and Jurgen, but you have to make sure that Jurgen eats the berry.”

Bethany blinked. “How!? He’s, like, super pissed off!”

Alex rested his hands on her shoulders. “You can do it,” he assured with a soft smile. “Bethany, you’re amazing at thinking on your feet. And you’re smart. You can figure it out.”

“I…” Bethany stopped herself from protesting. She _was_ smart, even if it wasn’t always with books and science and stuff. And Alex believed in her. Bethany nodded, determined to prove him right. “Okay.”

“Be careful,” Alex said. He squeezed her shoulder before letting go.

Bethany would let herself feel things about that later, but she had work to do now and couldn’t be distracted. “You, too.”

Returning to the camp, Bethany tried to think of something, anything to get Jurgen to eat the berry. He thought he was going to kill Flame in front of Dr. Bravestone, except it was actually Switchblade. But that part didn’t matter, because Dr. Bravestone was going to show up, and Jurgen would still want to kill her in front of him. So that meant… Jurgen wanted to gloat. Bethany grinned, and idea forming.

Bethany found a bowl by the pot of stew—or whatever—that had miraculously survived the attack. She scooped some into the bowl and looked around. There were sounds of fighting coming from the other side of the hill. Bethany steeled herself. If this worked, she was going to seriously consider being an actress.

As she crossed over the hill, Bethany spotted Jurgen and a select few cloaked men standing by an angel statue. Flame, impossible to miss due to her vibrant red dress, was being held by two of them with her arms bound behind her back. Guards were fighting off Switchblade’s men as they attempted to enter the cemetery through a hole in the fence. She bit her lip. No time for nerves.

Bethany slunk down the hill and took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. She lowered her head and made her way towards Jurgen.

“Halt!” one of the men ordered, having caught sight of her.

She did so.

“What are you doing?” the same man demanded.

Bethany didn’t look him in the eye. “I’m sorry, sir, but My Lord didn’t eat his breakfast.”

The man sneered. “Are you stupid, girl? There’s a battle going on.”

“I-I’m not trying to be, um, rude? But I overheard My Lord saying he wanted to kill the lady as a show of power,” Bethany explained, trying to keep up the servant act. Jurgen turned to look down his nose at her. “Maybe if My Lord ate, he would show he was even more powerful? That a battle wasn’t, like, bothering him? That fighting could happen and he would still eat because he’s just that strong and mighty and great and… uh… powerful.”

It wasn’t the greatest way to put it, but Bethany hadn’t had time to actually come up with what to say ahead of time. 

Jurgen’s expression was unreadable. “You’re a forward one, aren’t you?” he said with a snort.

Bethany’s heart dropped. She was going to die.

“But I like that idea,” Jurgen continued. He smirked. “Intimidating my enemies by showing them I’m too powerful to care.” 

And Bethany breathed again. She held up the bowl, but kept her gaze lowered. Jurgen snatched the bowl from her hands and turned away, effectively dismissing her. Which was just fine with Bethany. She backed off immediately, retreating several feet away. Bethany still needed to make sure he ate the food.

Jurgen sat on a headstone, still holding the bowl with his eyes on the fight in front of him. 

“My Lord, My Lord!” a man shouted, running forward. He dropped into a low bow. “My Lord, we’ve caught Bravestone!”

“Oh no,” Bethany murmured.

“No!” Flame cried out, alarmed.

“Bring him to me,” Jurgen snapped. The man bowed again and disappeared. As he waited, Jurgen finally began to eat.

Bethany grinned. “Yes!” she cheered quietly.

Several guards marched forward, dragging a struggling figure between them.

Jurgen had finished another mouthful of stew when he saw who it was. “That’s not Bravestone you half-wits!” he roared, tossing the bowl into the snow at his feet.

Bethany winced. She hoped that had been enough. Still, she was glad to see Jurgen was right. It wasn’t Dr. Bravestone, but Switchblade his men had caught.

Switchblade glared up at Jurgen. “I’ll kill you! How dare you take my wife! I’ll shoot you dead and spit on your rotting corp—”

An axe to the face shut Switchblade up. His eyes rolled up into the back of his skull, blood pouring from the wound. Jurgen yanked the axe back out with a sickening  _squelch._ The men let go, and Switchblade crumpled to the ground. Flame screamed.

Bethany stared at his body in horror, unable to tear her gaze away from the gruesome sight. Nausea bubbled up in her throat.  Bethany doubled over and threw up.

“You are all useless!” Jurgen snarled at his men. “Find Bravestone and bring him to me, now!”

Having seen their boss be cut down, Switchblade’s men quickly surrendered. Jurgen nodded at the man with the hyenas. The man grinned, gave a sharp whistle, and released them. Switchblade’s men screamed as the hyenas attacked. A couple managed to run away, but many were not so lucky.

There was a shout of alarm. Followed quickly by more as guards suddenly dropped to the ground, dead. Bethany frowned as she moved away from the puddle of puke. Something was zipping through the air. Her eyes widened.

It was a boomerang.

Dr. Bravestone caught the boomerang without even looking as he entered the cemetery. Ruby, Mouse, Jefferson, Shelly, Fridge, Martha, Spencer, and Alex followed him in. Even to Bethany it seemed like a strange group.

Jurgen glared down at them as they approached. “Bravestone. You are finally done hiding like a coward?” he asked with a sneer.

“I wasn’t hiding,” Dr. Bravestone said, stopping several feet away. “But you messed with more than just me when you kidnapped Flame.”

“Yes. I found that out. But as you can see…” Jurgen kicked Switchblade’s body hard enough to send it skidding across the ground to Dr. Bravestone. “I dealt with the problem.”

Dr. Bravestone’s hands clenched into fists and he grit his teeth. 

“And I will fight you. But I thought you might want to enjoy a little show first, eh?” Jurgen laughed. “I wonder how strong you will be when your woman is slaughtered right in front of you.”

“Don’t you touch her!” Dr. Bravestone exclaimed.

Jurgen sneered and turned to face the guards holding Flame captive. “Bring her up front. So Bravestone can see clearly.”

The guards started to move. Or one of them did. A third guard had appeared behind them at some point during the face off. The third guard hit the second guard in the back of the neck, and he collapsed to the ground, unconscious. 

“Wha—!?” The first guard clapped a hand to his neck, then dropped. A dart stuck out of his neck. 

The third guard grabbed Flame’s arm and, as he turned to pull her away, Bethany could see it was Alan. She spotted Ming sneaking the opposite way.

Jurgen let out a snarl of fury and hurled his axe at them. Alan yanked Flame into the snow just in time. The other guards were held off by Ruby and her nunchucks, with Jefferson and Alex shooting at the ones closest to Alan. Fridge had the crowbar from earlier, and Martha had the bamboo stick. Both of them helped keep guards from getting too close to the rest of the group.

One of the guards closest to Jurgen handed over his sword. Jurgen pointed it at Dr. Bravestone. “You will still die today, Bravestone. I will be sure to make it slow and painful.”

Dr. Bravestone grabbed his own sword from a fallen guard. “That’s what you think, Jurgen.”

The two circled each other, inching closer and closer. Jurgen lunged, swinging at Dr. Bravestone’s arm. Dr. Bravestone blocked it with his own sword, throwing Jurgen back a step. They clashed again. Jurgen stumbled slightly. He recovered in time to dodge Dr. Bravestone’s next attack, which glanced off the plate of armor on his leg. Jurgen retaliated, cutting the sword up towards Dr. Bravestone’s stomach. He missed, Dr. Bravestone jumping back out of the way. They went back to circling.

Jurgen was breathing hard, and he let the tip of his sword drag along the ground beside him. “I will feed your body to my hyenas,” he growled.

“Then they will starve,” Dr. Bravestone retorted. “Because you’ve already lost this fight.”

“And what makes you think that?” Jurgen scoffed.

Dr. Bravestone shook his head. “You ate a Jumanji Berry. And it’s taking effect.”

Realization dawned in Jurgen’s eyes. “No. NO!” Jurgen brought the sword up, aiming to swing a blow down to Dr. Bravestone’s head.

But he was too slow. Dr. Bravestone thrust the sword up through a gap in the armor of Jurgen’s chest plate, and straight into his heart.  Jurgen’s sword fell from his grasp. He stumbled back and dropped to his knees. “You…” Jurgen coughed, blood spurting from his lips. Whatever he was going to say would remain a mystery. With a rattling gasp, Jurgen toppled over into the snow. Dead.

Silence fell across the cemetery.

Something wasn’t right.

Bethany gasped. Running out into the open, she called out, “JUMANJI!”

“JUMANJI!” Spencer shouted.

Then Fridge, Martha, Alex, and Alan joined in.

_“JUMANJI!”_

A beam of green light flashed in the distance. All the bodies of the guards and Switchblade’s men scattered across the snow dissolved into mist, swirling through the air in the direction of the light. Then the hyenas. Switchblade and Jurgen were next. 

“Dr. Bravestone!” Flame cried out. She reached for him, only for her hands, arms, and body to disappear into the mist. 

“Flame!” Dr. Bravestone shouted. Before he could make sense of what was happening, he, too, began to dissolve. 

One by one, Dr. Bravestone, Ruby Roundhouse, Franklin ‘Mouse’ Finbar, Professor Sheldon Oberon, Jefferson ‘Seaplane’ McDonough, and Ming Fleetfoot disappeared. Only Bethany and her friends remained, with Bethany and Alan back in their normal clothes. Not even the blood had been left, leaving the snow near pristine. 

“It’s over,” Alan said, voice too loud in the quiet.

Bethany blinked. “It is? That’s it?” She felt a little… disappointed. Bethany had hoped they would be able to say good bye to everyone.

“Now what?” Fridge asked. “What about everyone in town?”

Alan shook his head. “If it’s like before, no-one will remember. Everything’s been reset to how it was before Jumanji was played.”

“My mom!” Spencer gasped. “That means she’s gotta be back home!”

Alan was right. As they drove through town, everything looked back to normal. Like nothing in the past two days had ever even happened. No lions, no rhinos, no killer plants, and no evil warlords. And when they arrived at Spencer’s house, the only car there belonged to Spencer’s mom.

Spencer opened the front door. “Mom?”

No answer.

“I’m home!” Spencer called out, looking into the living room. It was empty.

Bethany had a bad feeling. But she shouldn’t. Everything was supposed to be back to normal. They’d beaten the game, and shouted Jumanji like they had before, and that was it. 

A thunk came from the basement.

“Maybe she’s down there?” Martha asked, though she didn’t sound sure of it.

“Yeah, that would make sense,” Spencer agreed. “She was trying to get the water heater fixed…”

They made their way to the basement. Spencer’s hand shook as he opened the door. “Mom?” he called again, going down the steps.

The basement was empty. Spencer’s mom wasn’t there.

Fridge frowned. “Then what made the noise?” he asked as they looked around.

“This did,” Alex said.

On the ground in front of him was Jumanji, the console a little worse for wear, but intact.

“Destroy it!” Alan snapped, grabbing an old baseball bat. 

Drums echoed throughout the basement. The console shook, and a green light flooded the room.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading everyone! I hope you're all still enjoying this.

Bethany’s scream echoed around her, body lurching as she dropped. _“Ough!”_ She slammed into the ground, her breath leaving her at the impact. Pained groaning around her could have only meant her friends had experienced the same thing. Bethany blinked open her eyes—when had she closed them?—and dazedly took in the fact she was staring up at a bright blue sky, dotted with fluffy clouds.

She was back in Jumanji. She was back. In. _Jumanji._

The sound of confused voices caught her attention. Bethany turned her head, and her eyes widened.

Dr. Bravestone stood only a couple feet away, Ruby at his side. Mouse, Jefferson, and Shelly were standing in a rocky valley, with misty, tree covered mountains towering in the distance. But if that was Professor Shelly…

Bethany looked down at her self. She gasped. She was herself. Her jacket and jeans and boots, strands of her blonde hair hanging into her eyes, _her body._ Bethany sat up and saw Spencer, Martha, Fridge, and Alex all there with her—and all themselves. The only one who wasn’t with them was Alan.

“What’s going on?” Spencer asked, getting up. “Why are we back in here?”

“I thought we beat the game,” Bethany said. She took Alex’s offered hand, and he pulled her to her feet. “Thanks.”

Alex nodded. “We did beat it.”

“Then it seems there’s more at play here,” Dr. Bravestone remarked, crossing his arms. “But what?”

“Spencer, do you think maybe… your mom’s stuck in the game?” Martha asked. “The repair man said she’d disappeared, and she wasn’t in the house after everything else went back to normal…”

Spencer looked like he might throw up. “My mom? _In Jumanji?”_

“We’ll figure it out,” Martha soothed, hugging him.

Fridge nodded. “Yeah, your mom’s always been pretty cool, she’s probably fine.”

“Spencer,” Dr. Bravestone said, approaching him. “I promise we’ll find your mother and help you all get back home. It’s the least we can do after you helped us.”

“Okay…” Spencer’s breathing calmed a bit. “Thanks.”

Bethany bit her lip. “Um, not to like, make anyone feel worse, but… we’re all _us_ right now.” She looked around at them all. “That could make this all a lot harder.”

“Well, we _are_ in the game, maybe we have our own stats?” Spencer suggested. He pressed at his chest. Everyone was shocked when an orange stat screen actually popped up.

**Strengths:**

  * Video Game Knowledge
  * Proactive




**Weaknesses:**

  * Strength

  * Pollen




“Why?” Spencer muttered to himself, looking up at his weaknesses.

“I’m surprised that worked,” Alex said, brows raised. He touched his own chest, his own screen showing up in brown.

**Strengths:**

  * Wilderness Survival

  * Knives

  * Supportive




**Weaknesses:**

  * None




Alex gave a little sigh of relief. “I know that doesn’t mean invincible, but that’s still pretty good.”

Bethany grinned. “Oh! Me next!”

**Strengths:**

  * Athletic

  * Social Intelligence

  * Supportive




**Weaknesses:**

  * Squeamish

  * Fighting




“I can live with that,” Bethany said, looking at the pink screen. She gave a little gasp and turned to Martha, bouncing on her toes. “Now you! I so want to see what cool things you get!”

Martha laughed softly. “Okay, okay. I _am_ curious.” A lavender screen popped up when she tapped her chest.

**Strengths:**

  * Intelligence

  * Aikido (Beginner)




**Weaknesses:**

  * Unassertive




“Guess that means it’s my turn,” Fridge huffed. Shaking his head, he brought up his golden stat screen.

**Strengths:**

  * Athletic

  * Tactics




**Weaknesses:**

  * Cocky

  * Cake




Fridge threw his hands up, groaning in annoyance. “Really? Now cake is _my_ weakness too?” He sighed and shook his head. “Guess it could’ve been worse.”

“So these are what you were talking about before,” Shelly said, studying Bethany’s stat screen. He reached up to touch it, but his hand went right through. “Very strange…”

Bethany nodded, smiling. “Yeah! And this means you guys probably have yours back now.”

One by one, they all tapped their chests, bringing up their stat screens. They were the same as what Bethany remembered, except for two.

“Bonus Strengths Unlocked?” Spencer read, looking at Shelly’s screen.

**Strengths:**

  * Cartography

  * Archaeology

  * Paleontology

  * Geometry




**Weaknesses:**

  * Endurance

  * Heat

  * Sun

  * Sand




**Bonus Strengths Unlocked:**

  * Singing




“Jefferson’s, too,” Alex pointed out, looking up at the light blue screen.

**Strengths:**

  * Pilot

  * Margaritas

  * Agility

  * Charisma

  * Mechanics




**Weaknesses:**

  * Mosquitoes

  * Storms




**Bonus Strengths Unlocked:**

  * Music

  * Guns




“Does anyone else see the arrow beside mine?” Mouse asked, squinting up at his own screen. There was a maroon arrow off to the right of his screen, pointing at nothing.

“We can,” Dr. Bravestone replied.

Spencer nodded in agreement. “Try touching it? It might mean you have another screen. I don’t know why, though.”

Mouse poked the little arrow. His screen changed, seeming to scroll to a secondary screen. “Inventory?” he read. 

**Inventory:**

  * Small Medipack x3

  * Boomerang x1

  * Nunchucks x1

  * Pistol x1

  * Sais x2

  * Binoculars x1

  * Lighter x1

  * Knife x2

  * Climbing Gear x1

  * Machete x1

  * Bedroll x6

  * Canned Food x4

  * Canteen x1




“It’s listing things in my bag,” Mouse said, tilting his head. He pulled his bag off his back and started looking through it. “I thought I had much more in here.”

Spencer stared at the screen, brow furrowed in thought. “Oh… Okay, I don’t know for sure, but I think I get it.” He pointed at the X’s. “Usually when games have x-whatever, it means more of those items can be collected. And then only a certain amount at a time.”

“That’s annoying,” Ming muttered, putting her own purple screen away.

Martha tapped her chest to make her screen disappear. “Yeah, that definitely makes things harder.” Her gaze dropped to her arm as the others also put away their screens. She pulled back her sleeves and held her arm up. “Guys, we’ve got a life bar. It looks a lot different, though.”

Bethany pushed up her sleeves and twisted her arm around. A long black bar stretched across her forearm, from wrist to inner elbow. “Weird!”

“This is like those life bars that let you take more damage,” Alex said, examining his own.

“Which would explain the medipacks.” Spencer glanced back at Mouse’s screen. “We’ll probably need to get more of those. And I’d guess there are big medipacks if they’re specifying the ones you have as small.”

Jefferson looked up from his arm. “Mine’s shorter. Could it be from the python bite?”

“Probably?” Spencer replied. “Maybe if you use one of the medipacks, it’ll heal.”

“I don’t know… I’d rather not use one if we only have three. We don’t know when we’ll get more,” Jefferson said, shaking his head. “I’ll be fine, and it’ll heal on its own.”

Dr. Bravestone placed a hand on his non-injured shoulder. “Seaplane, you’re a valuable member of our team, so it would never be a waste. Besides, wouldn’t being in full health be better?”

Jefferson smiled a little and nodded. “That’s a good point. If nobody minds, then I guess it wouldn’t hurt to try.”

Mouse pulled out one of the small brown medipacks. “How would it be any different than when he got stitched up in your world?” he asked, looking it over.

“Try touching it,” Alex suggested. “I’ve played games where that’s usually all that’s needed.”

“Okay.” Jefferson reached out and touched the medipack. It disappeared in a gleam of green light. “Oh, wow! I think it worked.” Jefferson poked at his shoulder, his smile widening. Glancing down at his arm, his health bar was now as long as everyone else’s.

Bethany beamed. “Awesome! Now we know how that works.”

“Yes, but as great as that is, I really don’t know what to make of all this,” Dr. Bravestone said, hands on his hips. “We never had all these… things before. But now we do?” He paced. “Clearly something has changed. You are yourselves here, despite that not happening before, and now we have these “video game” elements. But we’re also ourselves.” 

“This seems like something my colleagues would enjoy discussing,” Shelly remarked, rubbing at his bearded chin.

Ruby crossed her arms and tilted her head. “What do you mean?”

Having everyone’s attention on him, Shelly cleared his throat and tugged at his bow tie. “Well, back at Yale, some of my colleagues enjoyed getting together and discussing various theories. Professors Atkins and Sawyer were particularly fond of discussing the possibilities of multiple universes, something I believe they called the S-Matrix, and wormholes.” Shelly gave a small, self-deprecating smile. “A bit beyond me, I admit, but this sounds like the sort of things they’ve talked about.” 

“I’ve heard of the multiverse theory,” Spencer said. “Honestly, I don’t know much about it, but yeah. Maybe this is something like that?”

“It’s something worth investigating,” Dr. Bravestone agreed. “Would you be able to write to your colleagues? Perhaps they may have a way of fixing this. Or at the very least some ideas of things to try.”

“I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to ask,” Shelly agreed, nodding.

“Okay, this is good to know. But I think what we need to focus on right now is where we are,” Jefferson said, looking around. “It kind of looks familiar, but I’m not sure.”

Shelly pulled out his map. “Considering how things are working out right now, I’m hopping this has changed back to a map of Jumanji.” He unfolded it, and smiled. “I was right. It is Jumanji again.”

“It is?” Jefferson asked, looking over his shoulder. “I don’t see anything?”

“What do you mean? It’s all here,” Shelly said, pressing a finger to the map.

Bethany’s eyes widened. She moved to Shelly’s side and peered over. “Oh. That’s too bad,” she sighed. “It’s blank for me, too.”

“Makes sense to me,” Fridge said with a shrug. “We’re back in the game, so only Shelly can use the map.”

“Then you’re going to have to tell us where we are,” Ming told Shelly, arching an eyebrow.

“Ah, yes, let’s see… Well, it looks like we’re by the mountains where we had a run-in with the mandrills,” Shelly explained. “And it’s marked Level Six: Mount Zhatmire.”

Martha looked at Fridge. “Wasn’t that what the level was called when we got here before?”

“Yeah, sounds familiar,” Fridge replied. “Maybe it’s kinda like the second time we ended up in From The Deep long enough for me to get eaten by that stupid python and that’s about it.”

Spencer glanced around. “I hope that doesn’t mean another attack from those monkeys.”

“Then we should get going to wherever we need to go,” Ming piped up. “Oberon, what else does your map show?” 

Shelly, who had been studying the map the entire time anyway, looked up. “Hm? Oh, right.” He adjusted his glasses. “It doesn’t seem to be giving us any particular direction. A lot of where we’ve been before is still visible, so it’s difficult to tell if there’s anywhere in particular we’re meant to go. And then there’s all this area that’s blank…”

“I think I remember a village not far from here,” Jefferson said, gesturing at the winding road leading away from them. “We can at least head there. Pick up some supplies and send a letter to Yale?”

The sound of hooves echoed up from the mountain path. Eleven horses came trotting around the corner, led by one being ridden by a man.

“Maybe I can be of service!” Nigel Billingsley shouted from the large brown horse he was riding. He came to a stop and hoped off. “Welcome back to Jumanji!”

“Wow, great timing,” Bethany commented. She hoped Nigel had more information now that they were back in the game. They’d be going in circles otherwise.

Dr. Bravestone smiled and shook his head. “Always right when we need you.”

Nigel chuckled. “I certainly try my best, Dr. Bravestone. And I had a feeling you would be around here, since I myself returned at a little village not far from here.” He gestured to the horses. “I also assumed you’d be needing transportation. Ms. Flame has been spotted back at the Oasis, and I’m sure she’d like to talk to you.”

“Sounds like our next destination, then,” Ruby said, uncrossing her arms. She climbed up into the saddle of one of the horses. “Let’s go.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the comments and kudos everyone! I hope you all like this next chapter. ^_^

Shelly’s neck and back protested as he and the others rode their borrowed horses down the mountain path. That fall he’d taken when they’d arrived back in Jumanji had not been kind. At least his horse—a roan mare Finbar had informed him was known as a Trakehner—was very even tempered and stepped carefully over the rocky terrain. He gave her long neck a gentle pat, receiving a flick of the ear in his direction in response.

The ride down the mountain was surprisingly peaceful, and the air gradually warmed up as they wound their way down the mountain. Shelly knew the peace wouldn’t last long, but it was nice in the meantime. His gaze landed on Jefferson where he rode a little ways ahead with Alex, Spencer, and Martha. They were talking about something, though Shelly couldn’t hear what. Whatever it was, though, made Jefferson laugh and grin. Shelly wished he could do that.

“Heeeyyy!” Bethany greeted, riding up beside Shelly.

“Oh, hello,” Shelly replied, giving her a small, polite smile.

Bethany blinked at him. “You okay?”

That was out of the blue. “Yes, I’m fine,” Shelly said. “Why do you ask?”

“I don’t know. Something just seemed, like, off?” Bethany shrugged. She looked ahead, attention flicking from one person to the next. “You remind me a little of Spencer and Martha, before this whole Jumanji thing.”

Shelly’s brows rose. “How so?”

“You’re super smart, and probably have a lot to say, but you don’t really talk to people unless people talk to you first,” Bethany explained, turning her gaze back on him. She grinned. “And you’ve got a big crush on a certain _someone_ and probably won’t say anything to him either.”

“I—What—No—I don’t…” Shelly spluttered, trying to wrap his head around the fact that someone had read him so well. And was he so obvious in his feelings for Jefferson? What if Jefferson knew? Humiliation crawled up his throat, cutting off any attempt at coherent speech.

Bethany’s eyes widened and she guided her horse closer so she could reach out and touch his shoulder. “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to make you, like, freak out,” she said. “And you totally shouldn’t be. I mean, I guess I don’t know what things are like in Jumanji, but none of _us_ really care if you’re gay or bi or whatever. And if the others are really your friends, they won’t either.”

“… Thank you, but that’s not the issue,” Shelly said, finally finding his voice. He did appreciate Bethany’s concern and attempt at an apology. Of course she hadn’t meant to upset him, she didn’t seem the type. Shelly tried to calm himself with even breaths. “Have I been so obvious?” he asked quietly.

“Huh? No!” Bethany shook her head. Smiling again, she replied, “I’ve just always been good at knowing when someone’s crushing on someone else. Like, everyone’s been too busy trying to not die, so I don’t think anyone’s really been paying any attention.”

That made sense. Shelly mentally scolded himself, his pining wasn’t a priority to anyone but himself. And it shouldn’t have even been one for him.

“Besides,” Bethany continued, “Seaplane kinda seems like the type of guy to not notice someone’s thirsty for him unless they’re super obvious about it. People probably throw themselves at him a lot, so he’d be used to that sort of thing.”

Shelly nodded. He knew that. Well, he suspected that. Jefferson was handsome, charming—that _was_ one of his strengths apparently—and talented, and kind… so who wouldn’t fall for him? Shelly, on the other hand, didn’t really see what he could offer.

“Oh! I just had a great idea!” Bethany gasped gleefully. “Not to brag, but I’m great at setting people up. I could totally help you up your flirting game.”

“I… I don’t know. I’d rather not risk our friendship,” Shelly said. He glanced down at himself. “Besides, look at me.”

Bethany huffed and rolled her eyes. “I know. I _was_ you, remember? And there’s nothing wrong with the way you look. You’ve just gotta own it.” She fiddled with the reins of her horse. “And anyway, there’s more important things than looks.” Bethany smiled at him. “You’re a genius, you’re really nice, and you’ve got killer singing skills, so I don’t see any problems.”

“That’s very kind of you to say,” Shelly replied, unable to help but smile in return.

_“Sooo?”_

Shelly sighed. “I appreciate your enthusiasm for helping me. I’m not entirely sure why you want to. But as you said earlier, we have more important matters at hand, such as “not dying”.”

“I get that,” Bethany said, nodding. “But what if we do die? Do you really wanna die without even having tried?”

Once again, Shelly was stumped. He cast a glance at Jefferson. Who happened to have turned enough to speak to Fridge to notice. Jefferson gave one of his lopsided grins and nodded in acknowledgment before returning to his conversation. Shelly’s heart beat so fast he was surprised he wasn’t having a heart attack. He turned back to Bethany, who regarded him with a knowing look. “Okay.”

Bethany beamed. “Yes! By the time we’re done, you’ll be slaying in no time. Now, one of the main things I think would help…”

Night had long fallen by the time they reached The Oasis. It was just as claustrophobic as the last time they’d been there; buildings were crammed together, homes on top of shops, with wires and ropes stretching across the dusty streets that were draped with rugs, lights, clothes, furs, and anything else the people felt like. The smells of various spices and cooking meats wafted through the air, smoke billowing out from street vendors and restaurants. A man shouted lewd things to a woman on a balcony, and she dumped the bucket of water she’d held on him while cursing him out. Dogs barked and growled from an alleyway, fighting over something Shelly didn’t wish to identify.

_“Ugh,_ we’re gonna need different clothes. It’s too hot for these,” Bethany complained, tugging at her turtleneck.

“There are several shops around here where you can find good clothes at a cheap price,” Nigel called back, leading them through the winding streets. “I’ve got enough gold for all of you. But first, I highly recommended checking into the hotel here. Luckily, it also has a stable.”

Spencer leaned over to Martha. “Is it me, or does he seem like he’s caught between being a person and an NPC?”

“No, it’s not just you,” Martha replied.

“What’s an NPC?” Ming asked, having overheard them.

Shelly was also curious. Clearly it was a video game thing, but it had to be something different than an “avatar”, though by how much, he didn’t know. It sounded like some sort of machine, or perhaps an automaton or robot.

“It stands for Non Player Character,” Spencer said. “Basically in games, they’re the background people, or people who give you quests or tasks, or shop keepers, that sort of thing. They usually only have a couple of lines, and will only respond to certain things. Nigel, Flame, Van Pelt, they were all NPCs.”

Jefferson glanced around. “So you’re saying everyone around here is an NPC?”

“Pretty much,” Martha said.

“Or that’s what it was like before,” Alex added. He shrugged. “Who knows what’s going on now, though.”

They arrived at a wide, limestone, three-story building. Beneath a tiled keyhole arch, a lapis lazuli sign declared the place to be the Paradise Hotel in curling gold letters. Nigel brought them around to the back where the stables were, handed off the horses to the stable boy, and led them into the hotel.

Earth toned geometric tiles claimed the bottom half of the walls inside, with tapestries and intricate rugs taking up some of the upper half. Four square pillars blocked off a seating area in the center of the lobby beneath a skylight, and small palm trees were tucked into the corners of the room. Wall sconces cast a sleepy orange haze over the place.

“Alright, your rooms have been accounted for,” Nigel announced, having returned from the front desk. He handed out room keys to Dr. Bravestone, Ruby, and Alex. “You will be required to share, as there are only three rooms available. However, there are four beds in each.”

Dr. Bravestone looked to Shelly. “Do you think you’ll be able to write a letter to your colleagues tonight?”

“Of course,” Shelly agreed. It was important, so he would certainly try.

“Excellent.” Dr. Bravestone turned to Nigel. “I’m going to need you to deliver Shelly’s letter to Yale, and come back with a response.”

Nigel looked blankly at Dr. Bravestone for a moment, before smiling again. “Yes. The letter shall be in safe hands with me.” He then approached Spencer, and held out a little bag. “This should be enough gold for you and your friends to buy more appropriate clothing. Use it wisely.”

Spencer took the bag. “Uh, thanks.”

Pale moonlight spilled in through the window, joining the warm golden glow from the little lamp on the dark wood of the desk. He’d spread out on it almost instantly, paper, pen, and his hat taking up the whole space. Dr. Bravestone’s low snoring from one of the beds in the shared room barely registered to him, having grown used to it during their previous expeditions.

The room situation had been easy to set up: Dr. Bravestone, Jefferson, Finbar and himself shared one, Ruby, Ming, Bethany, and Martha shared their own, while Mr. Billngsley, Spencer, Fridge, and Alex took the third.

Shelly sighed and reached up under his glasses to rub at his left eye. The letter was stressful. If he worded it poorly, he could potentially cost them all very valuable information.

“Hey.”

Nearly jumping out of his skin at the whisper, Shelly turned in his seat. Jefferson stood behind him.

“Sorry,” Jefferson said, leaning a hand against the desk. The light from the lamp danced in his dark mahogany eyes. “Didn’t mean to scare you. You’ve been at that a while, though.”

Shelly blinked, then looked away. “I should be apologizing, then. I didn’t realize I was keeping you awake,” he replied softly.

“You weren’t,” Jefferson assured. He looked at the letter, then back at Shelly. “Is everything okay?”

That was the question, wasn’t it. “Yes. I’m just a perfectionist,” Shelly replied with a quiet laugh. He didn’t quite feel it, though, and Jefferson didn’t look convinced either. Shelly sighed. “If I word this letter poorly, I’m afraid I’ll cost us possibly valuable information. Professor Atkins and Professor Sawyer have always believed me… ineffective at my job. They think I run off on these “adventures” in order to avoid actually teaching. To be lazy. Not that they even think my work is important. For them, it’s all about the future. The past is done, over with.”

Jefferson frowned. “They sound like assholes.”

“I won’t disagree with you,” Shelly said, smiling a little. Honestly, he was surprised by how pissed Jefferson looked.

“How can they think you’re lazy?” Jefferson asked, shaking his head. His hand had balled into a fist where it rested on the desk. “What about saving Jumanji from Van Pelt and Jurgen? We couldn’t have done either without you.”

Shelly stared up at Jefferson with wide eyes. He’d never had someone mad on his behalf before. “It’s alright, really, I’m used to it. Though I’ll admit it’s nice to know you all appreciate me.” Shelly smiled, gaze dropping to the desk.

A sigh. “That’s not right,” Jefferson said. “You deserve better treatment than that.”

It was hard to know how to respond to that. Shelly folded his hands on his lap. “Well, the reality right now is that this letter has to be perfect. But I think I’ve done all I can.” He turned out the lamp and stood, stretching his back. “I just hope it’s enough.”

“It will be,” Jefferson assured, touching Shelly’s arm. After a moment, he let his hand drop away, then he turned and headed for his bed.

Shelly made his way over to the remaining unclaimed bed and shrugged off his jacket. He hung it on the bed post, tucking his bow tie into the right pocket. It was as he turned to sit on the bed that his gaze landed on Jefferson once more. Heat rose in his cheeks as he realized Jefferson had been speaking to him the entire time in only his undershirt and boxers. Not that it should matter, of course. It was bound to happen when sharing such close quarters.

Trying not to think too much about it, Shelly removed his boots and set them at the end of the bed. He decided against undressing further. Shelly set his glasses on the little wooden table between his bed and Jefferson’s, and buried himself in the thin cotton blankets. He shut his eyes and tried to ignore the rustle of blankets in the neighboring bed, followed by a low, content sigh.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone who's reading, leaving kudos, and commenting! I truly appreciate it!

As soon as Nigel had left with the letter Shelly wrote, they went to explore the Oasis. While Nigel didn’t know where Flame was exactly, the town wasn’t overwhelmingly big, so finding her didn’t seem like it would be difficult. As long as she was actually there.

Jefferson didn’t know what to expect, or if it would help them to fix their situation, but they had to do something while they waited for Nigel to return. He glanced at Shelly, who was studying the map. Jefferson couldn’t help but smile to himself, even as annoyance at the other professors simmered in his chest. He just wished there was something he could do.

At least the others were in a better mood, now that they’d gotten weather appropriate clothes. Alex, Spencer, and Fridge had chosen similar outfits with some variation; button down shirts in white, beige, and khaki, and simple canvas pants in black or brown tucked into either riding boots or combat boots. Spencer had decided to add a khaki canvas vest, while Fridge had gone with a leather jacket and a wide brimmed fedora, and Alex had preferred some suspenders and a black neckerchief. 

Martha and Bethany had gone for something very different, however. Martha had gone with a beige button down shirt with short sleeves, a high-waisted belt, olive pants, and short tan boots, while Bethany chose a black tank top and camouflage cargo pants with knee-high black boots. 

“This is like, so much better,” Bethany said with a sigh, tying her hair back into a pony-tail. “No more sweating.”

“So, were you trying to be Indiana Jones?” Spencer asked Fridge, tone teasing.

Fridge smirked and adjusted his hat. “He is the best, so why not?”

“Actually, I’d say his outfit is the least suited for adventuring,” Alex pointed out. “Leather isn’t great when wet.” 

Bethany giggled at Fridge’s crestfallen look.

“Hey, is that Flame over there?” Fridge asked, hurriedly changing the subject. However, it became genuine when he pointed into a crowd that was gathered by a vendor selling incense. As the people shifted, a woman in a red dress could be seen.

Dr. Bravestone clapped him on the shoulder. “Good eye. I think it is.” His bravado seemed to wane, however, as they approached. “Flame?”

The woman turned. It was her. Flame’s large, dark eyes widened, and her ruby lips parted in a bright smile. “Smolder!” She slipped through the crowd and threw her arms around Dr. Bravestone’s neck. “I am so happy to see you! Thank you for saving me!” Flame pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“I would never leave you to die,” Dr. Bravestone replied. “Are you hurt, though? Did Jurgen do anything to you?”

Flame pulled away so she could look him in the eyes. “I am well, and no. Beyond keeping me in a horrible cage, and then guarding me with those ferocious hyenas, he did nothing to me.” Her eyes closed and she turned her head, a hand rising to clutch at her chest. “As much as I hated Switchblade, I had not wanted him to suffer such a death. It may haunt me forever.”

Dr. Bravestone’s hands cupped her shoulders. “And I’m so sorry you had to witness it. I wish it hadn’t happened that way,” he said. “But, you’re free from them both now.”

“I am,” Flame agreed. She smiled up at him, eyes watery. “Smolder, I will always love you. You know that. But… we cannot be together.”

“Wow, plot twist,” Fridge muttered. That earned him a sharp elbow jab from Martha.

“As you said, I am free,” Flame continued. She stepped back. “Switchblade’s money, his assets, they belong to me now. Which means I have a chance to change this place. I can make it better, _safer._ And that is something I must do on my own. I hope you understand.”

“YAAAS, QUEEN!” Bethany cheered.

Shelly gave her a baffled look. “What?”

“What? She’s taking charge of her own life, which is high-key awesome,” Bethany replied, hands on her hips.

Dr. Bravestone, who had looked over at the commotion, turned his attention back to Flame. “I do understand,” he said. His smile was a genuine one. “If anyone can make a difference here, it would be you. I wish you the best.”

Flame gave him a chaste kiss. “Thank you. You are a good man, Smolder. I do hope we will cross paths again, some day.” And with that, she turned and disappeared into the crowd once more.

Mouse gave Dr. Bravestone’s back a sympathetic pat. “Are you alright?”

“Yes. Thank you, Mouse,” Dr. Bravestone replied, nodding once.

“Hey, while you were all living a romance novel, I found out something interesting,” Ming said, appearing seemingly from nowhere.

Jefferson hadn’t even noticed she’d left. And based on the other’s reactions, neither had they.

“What is it?” Ruby asked, not letting her surprise get to her.

Ming looked around. “Maybe we should talk about it back at the hotel. Who knows who could be listening out here.”

They gathered in the room Jefferson shared with Shelly, Dr. Bravestone, and Mouse. It was a tight fit, but there weren’t any other choices as all the rooms were the same size. Dr. Bravestone, Ruby, and Fridge remained standing, while the rest of them sat on the beds, or in Ming’s case, perched on the desk.

“Okay, so, I overheard an interesting conversation by a spice trader,” Ming said. “Apparently, there’s a strange man trying to find a gold city or something. I know that’s not much of anything to go on, but the way they said it, it sounded important.”

“The Golden City?” Shelly asked, eyes wide.

“Mhm.”

“Sounds like you know what that is,” Fridge commented, leaning his shoulder against a wall.

Shelly nodded. “I’ve heard of it. Honestly, it’s been considered a myth, but then again, so was the Jaguar’s Eye and the Falcon Jewel.” He pushed his glasses up his nose. “From what I recall, it’s meant to be a magical city completely made of gold. Various texts supposed it to be the epicenter for the original natives of Jumanji. Or even a religious site.”

Martha tilted her head. “That kind of reminds me of El Dorado.”

“That cartoon?” Bethany asked, arching an eyebrow.

“No. I mean, yeah, the cartoon was based off an actual legend, though,” Martha explained. “But El Dorado was supposed to be a lost city of gold, too. That’s what I meant.”

Shelly nodded slowly. “How interesting. I’ve never heard of it, but perhaps there’s a correlation…” He shook his head. “Either way, the Golden City would definitely be a major find. If it exists.”

“That’s cool, but what does this have to do with us?” Fridge asked, looking around at them.

Spencer scratched at his head. “Well, if we’re playing by video game rules, it probably means _something_. There’s always a reason for “out of nowhere” information in games. Well, almost always. Sometimes it’s just random NPC backstory, but this doesn’t seem like that.”

“I agree. Ming was probably meant to overhear that conversation. So maybe our way of fixing all of this is at this Golden City,” Alex pointed out.

Shelly pulled out the map from his jacket and unfolded it. “Oh. Our hotel has been marked as a Check Point. But I don’t see anything else new,” he said with a frown. “I suppose it was too much to hope for the map to just tell us where it is.”

Jefferson leaned over to look at the map, despite knowing for him it would be blank. He still hopped it would suddenly show itself, if only so he could get some idea of what Shelly was seeing. Jefferson could sort of read maps, but he was no cartographer.

“But that’s a good idea,” Spencer said. “Maybe it will tell us, when we finish this level? We’re also waiting for Nigel to come back, so that could trigger the next level to be revealed on the map. Or maybe we’re supposed to gather information here at The Oasis.”

Dr. Bravestone rubbed his chin, looking thoughtfully into the distance. “It can’t hurt to try. While we wait for Nigel’s return, we’ll see what we can find out here,” he told them.

“Are you sure I’m the best one to invite here?” Shelly asked, following Jefferson into the local tavern. The place was awash in dim blue and gold light from the multicolored hanging lamps and sconces.

Jefferson raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, of course. Why wouldn’t you be?” He led them over to the bar and settled on an empty stool. When Shelly sat beside him, he gestured for the bartender—a man in his late thirties with a very distinctly curled black mustache. “I’ll have a Sidecar, please.”

“Hmm… I suppose I’ll have a Gimlet, please,” Shelly told the bartender. He returned his attention to Jefferson. “I would have thought you’d be able to get more information if I wasn’t… holding you back.”

“You’re not holding me back,” Jefferson replied. He didn’t even know what Shelly meant by that. It wasn’t as though he’d planned on going around the bar asking about the Golden City, and even if he had, Shelly wouldn’t have caused any problems. In fact, he’d probably be good at that, people seemed to trust him. Which wasn’t surprising, Shelly just was a naturally kind and trustworthy person. “I didn’t really have much of a plan beyond sitting here, looking like I’m enjoying the place, and seeing what I overhear.” And it was also a good excuse to spend some time with Shelly and get to know him better.

Shelly blinked. “Oh. I see.”

“Your drinks.” The bartender set them down in front of them. “Twenty-five silver.”

Jefferson checked his pockets. “Damn. I have twenty. I don’t suppose you could forget the five?” he asked, flashing the bartender his most charming smile.

The bartender looked down at the silver on the bar top, then back at Jefferson. He scooped them up with an awkward clearing of his throat. “Alright. Just don’t make it a habit.”

“Of course not. Thank you,” Jefferson replied. He took a sip of his drink. It was pretty good, and the lemon wasn’t too overpowering. Jefferson turned his attention back to Shelly with a smile. “Relax, alright? We’re just having some fun.”

“Right.” Shelly sighed, shoulders releasing their tension. He sipped his drink and gave a thoughtful hum. “Not bad. I think I’d prefer one of your margaritas though.”

“Hah, thanks,” Jefferson laughed. He smirked, glancing behind Shelly. “I don’t think the bartender appreciated the comment, though.”

Shelly went red. He turned to look at the bartender. “I’m so sorry, this really is good!” he insisted. When the bartender simply rolled his eyes and went to attend to another customer, Shelly groaned and hid his face in his hands. “How embarrassing. This is why I avoid these sorts of things.”

Jefferson stifled the laugh that wanted to bubble up. Shelly was adorable when flustered. Still, he didn’t want him to feel bad. Jefferson gently pulled Shelly’s hands away from his face. “It’s okay. He doesn’t really care,” he said, letting go. “But hey, after all this is over, maybe I’ll have another chance to make you one of my margaritas.”

“That sounds nice,” Shelly replied with a small smile.

“Great.” Jefferson leaned his elbow on the bar top and rested his cheek on his fist. “I’m sure you could use one after dealing with those bastards at Yale.”

Shelly fiddled with his glass. “That’s true.” He took a drink. “However, there’s a good chance I might not be able to even keep my job after this. I’ve spent too much time away without notice.”

“Maybe it could be a good thing,” Jefferson said, sitting up straight.

“How?” Shelly asked, looking at him with surprise. “I’ve spent so much of my life there, to the point I practically live in my office. It’s how I manage to even have the funding for my own research. Without it, I don’t have much of anything.”

Jefferson hooked his foot under the rung of Shelly’s stool and dragged him closer. Shelly yelped and fumbled with his drink, trying not to spill it. Leaning forward so he was in Shelly’s personal space, Jefferson shifted so his foot was on the rung between Shelly’s and grinned. “What about becoming an adventurer like Dr. Bravestone? From what I’ve heard, he, Ruby, and Mouse pretty much do this for a living all the time, so they get funding from somewhere. We all work really well together, and we’re pretty important to the team. There’s so much more to explore in the world. I think it’d be more fun to do together.” Jefferson gave a little huff of amusement. “Also, you’re a genius, so I wouldn’t be surprised if you had other people hoping for your expertise in between jobs.”

Shelly stared at him, wide brown eyes sparkling in the lamp light behind his little round glasses. A soft pink spread across his cheeks. “I’d never considered that,” he said softly. “That would be amazing.”

“Yeah, it would,” Jefferson agreed.

“—Golden City?”

Jefferson and Shelly both went on the alert. The woman’s voice had come from a table somewhere to the right.

“Mhm. Heard that whoever finds it will be able to rule this whole land,” a man said. “But it’s been lost in the jungles for hundreds of years, if it ever existed. Nobody can even agree if it’s the Bosajabe jungle or Marazi. So I don’t know why he was so worried about it.”

“I heard that the Falcon Jewel was real. The man who stole it was here in this very bar not long ago,” the woman replied. “So who’s to say this isn’t real either?”

“ _Tch_. Don’t be stupid.”

Jefferson smirked at Shelly. “Sounds like we’ve got a lead.”


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much to everyone who has been reading, commenting, and leaving kudos! It really does make me happy that people are enjoying this. So I hope you all like this next chapter. ^_^

Bethany couldn’t help but shoot Shelly curious looks as they all gathered back in the hotel room. She’d seen him return with Jefferson, so she hoped he’d been able to put some of her tips to good use. Bethany decided she’d ask later.

“We didn’t get any new information, but we did manage to find a merchant selling some medipacks,” Alex said, handing two small medipacks to Mouse, who put them in his bag.

“That’s still very useful, thank you,” Dr. Bravestone replied with a smile. “I certainly can’t fault you when _we_ couldn’t get anything either.”

Ruby looked over at Shelly and Jefferson. “What about you two?”

Jefferson grinned. “Actually, we heard something pretty interesting.” He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “We overheard a rumor that whoever finds the Golden City will be able to rule all of Jumanji.”

“And we have two possible locations where we can look for it,” Shelly added, smiling as well. “The Bosajabe or Marazi jungles.”

“Wow, that’s awesome!” Bethany said. “The having places to look part, not the whole “rule over Jumanji” part.”

Dr. Bravestone nodded. “Yes. So the strange man Ming heard about could be trying to find the Golden City for that reason. To rule Jumanji.” He rested his hands on his hips and his eyes smoldered. “We can not let that happen.”

The old looking white phone on the table between two of the beds rang.

Mouse was the closest, so he picked it up. “Hello?… Oh. Alright, thank you.” He hung up and turned to them all. “That was the front desk. Nigel’s back.”

“Great. Hopefully he’s back with something that’ll help us get home,” Fridge said.

As they left the room and walked down the hall, Bethany dropped back to walk beside Shelly. “ _So?_ How’d it go?” she asked quietly.

“How did what go?” Shelly asked, brows furrowed.

“You _know_ …” Bethany replied with a grin. “You got to spend some time with Seaplane, so spill. Did you try any of my tips?”

Shelly gave a little huff. “Oh. Well, I did compliment him, however it may have backfired a little. I accidentally insulted the bartender.”

Bethany made a noise of sympathy. “Did Seaplane mind?”

“I… Now that I think about it, he seemed more amused than anything,” Shelly said. He sighed. “And I tried not to talk badly about myself, but I may have slipped up here or there.”

“The good thing is that you tried,” Bethany replied. As the others started heading down the stairs, she stopped Shelly and gave him a quick hug. She quickly stepped back, remembering herself. Not everyone was a huger. “Next time will go even better. Okay? I mean, practice makes perfect, right?”

Shelly blinked, then smiled. “Yes, you’re right. It does. Thank you.”

They followed the others down to the lobby. Nigel, who had been standing by the front desk, spotted them and approached. “Professor Oberon, I came back straight away with a response from your colleagues at Yale.” Nigel pulled a letter from his pocket and handed it to Shelly. “I certainly hope it answers your questions.”

Shelly nodded distractedly, already opening the envelope. He unfolded the letter and read it. Then read it again.

“What did they say?” Ming asked.

“Surprisingly, they actually answered,” Shelly replied, mostly to himself. He cleared his throat. “It’s a little complicated, but I’ll try to simplify it. They’re explaining how a concentration of energy could, in theory, be used to connect to alternate realities. Particular locations throughout the world have been noted as having high amounts of energy, and they’re connected by things called ley lines.”

Spencer hummed thoughtfully. “I’ve heard of ley lines, but I don’t really know anything about them.”

“And… Ah.” Shelly pulled out another folded bit of paper from the envelope. “Oh my. They sent a world map marking the ley lines that have been discovered so far.” His eyes widened. “Jumanji isn’t on the map, but several of these lines cross where it should be.”

“So that means there’s a way back to our world from here. Somewhere,” Martha said, crossing her arms. “And, because of how things are going, it’s probably got something to do with the Golden City.”

“I’d be more surprised if it wasn’t,” Alex agreed, nodding.

Drum beats thrummed to life, echoing throughout the lobby.

“Great. Now what?” Fridge asked, shaking his head.

Shelly tucked the letter and world map under one arm, then took out the map of Jumanji. “Strange. The map has expanded, and places have been labeled, but only one has a level attached to it.” Shelly adjusted his glasses and brought the map closer to his face. “I think we’re headed for the Bosajabe Jungle, I don’t see the other one mentioned. However, our next level is calling itself High Flying.”

“If you’re headed to the Bosajabe Jungle, I would highly recommend taking a plane, to expedite your mission,” Nigel piped up with a smile. “As it’s quite late now, I’d also suggest waiting until the ‘morrow. By then I’ll have a plane squared away for you all.”

Dr. Bravestone grinned. “This is excellent. Thank you, Nigel.”

Nigel shook his hand. “Always a pleasure, my friend. I shall see you all bright and early.” And with that, he left.

The plane Nigel had gotten for them was like one out of a history textbook. It was a  light  gray with two blue stripes on the tail, four wings, and two propellers on the engines above the wheels. Bethany wasn’t sure what to think,  other than she hoped it was safe .

“Nice!” Jefferson and Alex exclaimed appreciatively. They looked at each other and laughed.

“I think I’ll leave the piloting to you,” Alex chuckled, gesturing at the plane.

Jefferson nodded and smirked,  putting on his aviator glasses . “Probably a good idea.” He climbed up onto one of the lower wings and pulled open the door. He lowered the stairs and waved them over. “Everybody climb in.”

They all got in and settled in the available seats, which had sun burst-like designs on the silver cushioned backs. It was a bit of a tight fit, but with Shelly up front with Jefferson so he could help navigate, they managed it. Bethany only had a little trouble figuring out the belt.

“It’s strange being in one of these again,” Alex commented, looking around. “I guess I was never in a Rapide, but a similar one. Then again, this is a little different than the Rapides I’ve seen. More seats…”

Bethany tilted her head. “Was it one of the ones you flew before we found you?”

“Yeah.” Alex turned his attention back to her. “Is it weird that I got into planes after I got out  of here ?”

“No! I totally got into traveling and exploring the outdoors because of this game,” Bethany replied, shaking her head. She smiled. “I think it’s a way to, like, cope with what happened.”

Alex nodded. “That’s a good way to look at it.” He leaned back in his seat. “I even got a pilot license. It was fun, even though I have no clue when I’ll ever use it. It’s also how I met my ex.”

“Oh.” Bethany played with the end of her pony tail. She hesitated, but curiosity got the better of her. “I’m sorry if it’s  totally rude to ask, but what happened?” 

“It’s not rude,” Alex assured with a small, half-smile. But as fast as it was there, it was gone. “I never told her about Jumanji. I never told  _anyone._ No-one would believe me, so why bother. Unfortunately, I had nightmares for the longest time. She knew something was up. She knew I was hiding something, but I couldn’t tell her. Eventually, she just couldn’t handle the fact that I was keeping  things from her—and I don’t blame her. Not at all. She deserves someone who can be open with her about their life. We both agreed, and luckily there’s no bad blood between us.”

Bethany nodded slowly. “Wow. I’m so sorry. That’s still gotta be difficult,” she said.

Alex shrugged. “There’s not much I can do about it.” He gave a quite laugh. “Thanks again for listening to me. You’re still so good at that.”

“Of course. I’m always happy to listen.” 

And what else could she say about that? Bethany watched him from the corner of her eyes, pretending to instead look out the window, resting her hand against the teal wall. She’d never felt anything for the boys she’d dated before like she had when she met Alex.  Some had been nice, others were complete assholes, but even the nice ones hadn’t been… right.

Of course, as Jefferson ‘Seaplane’ he had been attractive physically, but it was his personality that had won her over most. He’d been so kind to her, and she swore he had felt something, too, despite her being Shelly. Bethany hadn’t thought something like that was possible,  that someone could liker her for  _her_ _._ But then Jumanji had to go and fix the timeline. 

Bethany mentally scolded herself. She was happy he’d gotten to live his life. He absolutely deserved it. Still, it made things confusing. Alex was twenty years older than her. Normally that’d be totally  sketchy , but she’d known him when he was still technically her age, so then it wasn’t. Of course, no-one who hadn’t been in Jumanji would get that.

And that was the other problem. Alex had said it himself, she couldn’t tell people about Jumanji. She’d tried to explain it to Lucy, but she’d just thought she was making shit up  for attention . Bethany hadn’t tried telling anyone since. Alex was an amazing guy, so if  _he_ couldn’t make a relationship work because of Jumanji, then how did she stand a chance? The only guys she knew who had been in the game were Spencer—who was with Martha and not Bethany’s type  anyway —Fridge, and Alex. 

Bethany looked over at where Fridge was talking with Mouse. Fridge was totally hot, that wasn’t an issue. And he’d gotten nicer since their first adventure, though his temper still tended to get the best of him.  That and his perverted comments and jokes were not great.  She’d dated so many jocks, and she wasn’t sure if she really wanted to do it again. She figured it couldn’t hurt to give it a shot,  though . At least get to know him better?

Turning away, Bethany sighed. What if she never caught feelings for him? She liked his friendship, and she didn’t want to lead him on. Maybe it was best to not think about it too much, go with the flow. Sometimes that was the only thing to do.

Now that she was actually seeing out the window and not just looking, Bethany felt unease creep up her spine. The clouds that had started off white and spread out were now melding together in a dark gray.

“Alex, look. Those clouds, doesn’t it look like a storm’s coming?” Bethany asked, turning back to him.

Alex looked out his own window. He frowned. “It does.”

The plane lurched, and Martha yelped.

“It’s okay, just turbulence,” Spencer said, holding her hand. 

“I know I dropped out of the sky to help with the Jaguar’s Eye, but that was so quick,” Martha said, squeezing his hand. “Planes are different, for some reason.”

Bethany gave Alex a look. “Isn’t one of Jefferson’s weaknesses storms?” she whispered, not wanting Martha to overhear.

“Yeah,” Alex replied. He looked towards the cockpit, several emotions warring in his eyes. “Jefferson, what speed are we at?”

“90 miles per hour, and rising,” Jefferson called back. “And we’re climbing to about 600 feet. I see the clouds, don’t worry.”

A distant rumble of thunder punctuated his statement.

“How far away are we?” Dr. Bravestone asked.

Shelly looked out the front window, the side window, then back at his map. “We’re just arriving over grass plains right now, so… Still hundreds of miles.”

“We can make it,” Jefferson told them. He adjusted the controls. “105 miles per hour. If I can get to 1,000 feet, I can take this baby up to 157 miles per hour.”

The sky outside was dark, thick blue-gray clouds blocking out the sun. The plane climbed steadily higher. Bethany saw the sheet of rain right before they flew into it. Rain pelted the windows and shook the plane,  the  wind causing it to dip and rise. 

“Maybe we should land,” Ruby called to the front. “Wait for the storm to pass!”

“Got it!” Jefferson called back. A boom of thunder nearly drowned out his reply.

Lighting streaked across the sky. Another clap of thunder followed almost immediately after, and then another flash of lightning. A tree down below caught fire just as they started to descend.

“Shit!” Jefferson’s hands flew over the controls. “The fire is spreading, there’s no landing down there!”

Mouse took the binoculars from his bag and pressed them against the nearest window. “It’s hard to tell, but it looks like the edge of the storm further ahead.” He put them away. “If we can just get there, we should be fine, right?”

Jefferson brought the plane back up. It had lost some speed, and the turbulence wasn’t helping. 

“This is so not cool!” Bethany exclaimed, gripping the thin arm rests. A flash of lightning made her cry out in alarm.

_BOOM!_

Flames blasted by the windows. The plane careened to the side, and screams filled the air as it dropped from the sky.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the comments! You all are so nice, and seriously your comments give me such motivation. I hope you all enjoy this next chapter. ^_^

Smoke stung Jefferson’s eyes. He gasped and coughed, crawling out from under the wreckage of the biplane. Climbing unsteadily to his feet, he stumbled forward and braced himself against the trunk of a tree, sucking in cleaner air. It wasn’t until the screaming and shouting started filtering in that Jefferson had even realized he’d briefly lost his hearing. He turned, looking around.

The biplane had crashed through a canopy of trees, snapping in half somewhere on the way down, leaving the back hung up in the trees. Dr. Bravestone appeared from the smoke, Mouse draped over one shoulder, and Spencer the other. Martha, Ruby, and Ming followed a moment later. Poor Martha was shaking, tears streaming down her face. As soon as Spencer was on the ground he rushed to her, pulling her into an embrace.

Fridge clung to a branch, looking confused. “What the hell!?” he shouted. It turned into a coughing fit as the smoke billowed past him. He shimmed along the branch until he got to the trunk, then carefully climbed down.

“Bethany!” Alex called, climbing out of some bushes that he must have fallen into. He was a bit cut up, but didn’t look too injured.

“Up here!” came Bethany’s voice.

Jefferson spotted her, as did Alex. She was tangled in several vines, hanging high above the ground. She groaned in annoyance, twisting this way and that.

“I’ll come get you!” Alex told her, trying to find a tree he could climb.

Bethany squirmed, getting a hand free from one of the vines. It was hard to see exactly what she was doing, bending and curling in the mess of vines, but then she gave a little scream. Bethany clung to one of the vines, sliding free of the others and dropping safely to the ground. Grinning, she let go and turned to them. “I did it!”

Jefferson turned away, gaze darting every where. “Where’s Shelly?”

“He was up front with you, is he still inside?” Dr. Bravestone asked.

“HELP!”

That was Shelly’s voice. Jefferson darted into the underbrush, passing the crumpled nose of the biplane and scrambling over tree roots. The ground grew soft beneath his boots. Jefferson made his way around a large tree and froze.

Shelly looked up at him, eyes wide and helpless from where he was sunk chest deep into the muddy looking ground. Quicksand. He was bent at an uncomfortable angle from how he’d fallen, one arm stuck in the sand and the other still free. His glasses and pith helmet were scattered a few feet away.

“Shelly! It’s okay, I’ll get you!” Jefferson called out to him.

“Jefferson?” Shelly shifted and sunk a little more. “Stay back! It’s quicksand!”

Footsteps and the snapping of twigs alerted Jefferson to the others following him. There had to be a way to help. Jefferson grabbed a low hanging branch and snapped it. He could see a large root a little ways away, if he could get to it, he might be able to reach Shelly.

“Is that quicksand?” Spencer asked.

“Yes, don’t go any further,” Dr. Bravestone warned.

Fridge shook his head. “Maybe that’s why one of his weakness was sand. Quicksand, not regular desert sand,” he mumbled.

Jefferson pressed the stick to the ground in front of him. Nothing happened. He took a careful step forward. Poking at another patch of ground, the stick sunk a little. Jefferson pulled it free with a loud squelch. Not there. He tried different patches of ground, stepping only where he’d deemed it safe, until he finally reached the root.

Shelly had sunk even further, up to his neck. “Jefferson, please. You’ll only get stuck yourself,” he insisted, trying to keep his one free arm from getting trapped as well. The life bar on it was visible, and slowly draining.

“You called for help, I’m helping you,” Jefferson retorted, trying to reach one of the other low hanging branches. It was thicker than the others. He grabbed it and gave it a tug. It felt secure. Jefferson inched out along the root as it tapered off into the quicksand, keeping a firm hold of the branch. When he got as far as he could go, he stopped. Jefferson tightened his grip on the branch, knelt, and stretched out his arm. “Just reach out, I’m right here.”

Though it looked like Shelly wanted to protest, he didn’t. He reached out, sinking another few inches in the process. Their fingers brushed.

Jefferson leaned out even more. It was just enough to allow him to grab Shelly’s hand. “There! See? I can pull you out now.” He pulled. Shelly didn’t budge. In fact, he sunk even more.

“Jefferson I—” Shelly clamped his mouth shut, the quicksand rising to his lips. He tipped his head back, but with Jefferson still trying to pull him out, it didn’t work, the sand rising faster. Tears gathered in the corners of his eyes.

Jefferson glanced at the branch he held. He needed two hands to get Shelly, but he would fall in if he did. He had to try. Jefferson let go and toppled forward, grabbing Shelly’s hand with both of his. His chest smacked into the quicksand with a wet slap, but he gripped the root with his thighs.

“We have to help!” Bethany cried out.

No matter how hard he tried, Jefferson couldn’t pull Shelly out. “Come on, come on!” he grunted. Jefferson’s eyes widened in horror as Shelly slipped beneath the surface of the quicksand. “NO!”

Jefferson plunged a hand into the quicksand. He wriggled his arm, feeling water seep into the space left behind. Fabric. Jefferson gripped it. Using all his strength, he pulled again. He started to sink, face inching towards the quicksand.

Arms wrapped around Jefferson’s middle. Before he could register what was happening, he was yanked backwards. Jefferson kept his hold on Shelly’s hand and jacket, unwilling to let go no matter what.

“Keep holding on,” Dr. Bravestone instructed. He hauled Jefferson back, and back…

Shelly emerged from the quicksand. Dr. Bravestone gave a final pull, and they fell backwards onto the root. Jefferson broke free of Dr. Bravestone’s grasp. He grabbed Shelly’s shoulders and rolled him onto his side.

Shelly’s eyes snapped open and he gasped for air. He coughed and wheezed, sand spilling from his lips. Jefferson wiped at his face, trying to get rid of the sand on his cheeks and in his beard. Shelly didn’t react, his chest heaving as he struggled to regain his breath. Jefferson’s gaze caught the marking on Shelly’s arm as he turned onto his back. He grabbed Shelly’s wrist and turned his arm.

His life bar was almost gone. And it was still fading.

Jefferson looked up at Dr. Bravestone. “He’s dying.”

“I’ve got him.” Dr. Bravestone scooped Shelly up with little effort. “Do you remember the way back?”

Jefferson got to his feet. He looked back the way he had come, and he spotted the areas where the stick had sunk. And where it hadn’t. Jefferson nodded. “Follow me.”

They managed to make it back to the others, and just in time. Dr. Bravestone carefully laid Shelly on the ground and Mouse was instantly at his side with a medipack. He placed it in Shelly’s hand, and the medipack disappeared in the flash of green. Jefferson breathed a small sigh of relief as Shelly’s life bar filled back in.

But only to a point.

“He’s only got a quarter of his health back,” Ruby pointed out. “Maybe it’s because it’s a _small_ medipack?”

“Then we should use another one,” Jefferson said, kneeling by Shelly. He looked at Mouse, who handed him a second medipack. That brought them back down to two. Jefferson pressed it to Shelly’s palm, and once again it disappeared. His life bar filled out even more, stopping just shy of his wrist.

Shelly’s breathing relaxed and he already looked more aware.

“Here, got these for you,” Ming said, setting Shelly’s glasses in place on his nose and his helmet on his head.

“How the—? You work fast,” Fridge commented, shaking his head.

Adjusting his glasses, Shelly blinked up at them. “Thank you.” His gaze settled on Jefferson. “Really, thank you.”

Jefferson smiled and took hold of Shelly’s hand. He stood and helped Shelly to his feet. “You _did_ save my life. Of course I’d do the same for you.”

Shelly opened his mouth to respond, but his eyes flicked to the side. “Jefferson, look out!”

That and a loud buzzing had Jefferson whipping around. A giant mosquito was headed directly for him. Jefferson stumbled backwards, pulling Shelly with him.

_Thwack!_

The mosquito reeled backwards. Alex, held a thick branch in his hand at the ready.

“Mouse, pistol!” Jefferson shouted. Mouse took a pistol from his bag and tossed it to Jefferson. He caught it and shot the mosquito. It exploded in a burst of blood and guts.

“I hate those giant ones,” Alex said, shaking his head. He looked around, then dropped the stick.

Spencer grimaced down at the blood covering his clothes and arms. _“Eugh…”_

“Come on, let’s get out of here before more show up,” Jefferson said, looking around. The giant ones usually traveled in groups.

Bethany shuddered. “Yeah, no thanks. I don’t need to see any more of those.”

As they picked their way through the vegetation, Jefferson glanced at Shelly. He hadn’t let go of his hand, but no one was saying anything—if they had even noticed—so he would keep holding it. “Are you okay? We can stop to take a rest if you aren’t, yet.”

Shelly rubbed at his beard with his free hand, still getting sand out. “I’m okay, thank you. Those medipacks are very helpful,” he replied, smiling at him.

Jefferson nodded. They were. Not only had all pain from his stitches left once he’d used it, there was no scar left behind, and he’d felt more energized. “Okay. Just making sure.”

“I appreciate it,” Shelly said, pink flooding his cheeks.

“How did you even end up in the quicksand?” Jefferson asked after a moment.

Shelly shook his head. “I don’t know exactly. We slammed into so many trees and smoke was filling the plane. I think I fell out of the broken window at some point.”

“Damn,” Jefferson muttered. “I’m so sorry. If my piloting had been better—”

“Don’t you dare,” Shelly chided, frowning at him. “You’re an excellent pilot. You have no control over the weather, so there’s no reason to blame yourself.”

Jefferson’s brows rose. “Like how you blamed yourself for me getting bitten by the snake?” he asked with a small smirk.

Shelly blushed harder and he looked away.

“I know you still feel guilty for that.” Jefferson gently squeezed Shelly’s hand. “So. If you stop blaming yourself for that, I won’t blame myself for this. Deal?”

“… Deal,” Shelly agreed, unable to keep from laughing softly.

“Hey guys, I think I hear a river up ahead!” Fridge called out.

Sure enough, only a few feet ahead, there was a river. It wound lazily through the trees, wide and likely deep enough they’d have to swim if they wanted to reach the other side. Jefferson wasn’t sure he was even surprised when the drumming started up. He was, however, disappointed when Shelly released his hand to get the map.

“Level Nine: The Gamto River,” Shelly read. He checked the map against the surrounding area. “It looks like this should lead us into the jungle proper, if we follow it.”

“Great, but first I’m washing off this blood. Who knows what kind of diseases that mosquito carried,” Spencer said. He made his way down the river bank and waded into the water. Just as he dipped his arms into the water, he screamed. Spencer flailed, tripping and falling into the river. He scrambled to get up, still screaming in pain. Ruby dashed in, grabbed him by the back of his shirt and yanked him out, smacking at the fish that had attached themselves to him with their razor sharp teeth.

Piranhas.

Spencer stopped thrashing around as Ruby flung the last one back into the river. “It hurts, _fuck,_ it hurts,” he gasped, staring down at the bleeding wounds all over his body. Despite the blood smeared across it, his life bar was visible and had shrunk to half its original length.

Mouse grabbed the second to last medipack and shoved it into Spencer’s shaking hands. It disappeared in the green glow. There were no longer any marks on Spencer, even the blood was gone, and his life bar had filled to about where Shelly’s had. Still, Spencer couldn’t stop trembling.

“Right. So we don’t go in the river,” Ming remarked. “Good to know.”

Jefferson kept himself between Shelly and the river’s edge as the group set off again. Just in case. Not that Shelly noticed, too busy checking the map.

“If we follow the flow of the river, we should be fine,” Shelly said, looking up at Dr. Bravestone.

Dr. Bravestone smiled and nodded. “Excellent.”

Shelly sighed. “It’ll be a long walk. Honestly, it’s hard to tell how many miles this river goes on for,” he explained, frowning down at the map. “It could be anywhere from several hours to a day or two.”

“Hopefully just a few hours,” Fridge said with a huff. “We haven’t even made it to the jungle yet and we’re already down to one medipack. I don’t even wanna know what kinda shit we’re gonna have to deal with when we’re there.”

Shelly didn’t respond, but Jefferson could see the negative thoughts swirling behind his eyes. He wanted to comfort him somehow, but he wasn’t sure what would work.

Evidently, Fridge had noticed, too. “Shit, sorry, man. I wasn’t blaming anyone for needing the medipacks, just…” He trailed off with a shrug. “Sorry.”

“It’s alright,” Shelly replied quietly.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I say it every time, but really, thank you to those who are reading and commenting and leaving kudos! It's wonderful to know people are enjoying this. :D  
> Also, bonus note! I was listening to this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNrgHptWQY4) while writing the first part of this chapter. So feel free to give it a listen while you read if you really want to immerse yourself in the scene. :)

“Are those kayaks?” Bethany asked.

“Looks like it,” Ruby said. She passed the rest of them to get a better look. “Yes. Just up there.”

The group hurried after Ruby. After almost an hour of walking, the four orange kayaks lined up along the riverbank were a welcome sight. Or mostly welcome.

Ruby tipped one over, dumping a pile of bones on the ground. Along with something else. Ruby crouched and picked it up. “It’s a medipack, but bigger.” She stood and handed it over to Mouse, who put it in the bag.

Spencer eyed the kayaks warily. “Makes sense. A lot of games hide items with bodies as loot, or in weird places that you have to go out of your way to find.” He looked around. “We should keep an eye out for more.”

Mouse tapped his chest and the stat screen popped up. He poked the arrow and it changed to the Inventory. “A large medipack. I assume that will heal better than a small medipack?”

“Most likely,” Alex said as Mouse got rid of the screen again.

“So, we’re gonna use the kayaks despite the creepy skeleton?” Bethany asked, keeping a wide berth around the bones as she walked over to the kayaks.

Shelly looked from the river, to the map, then back to the river. “I think it would speed up our journey. Though it will make it more dangerous, what with the piranhas.” He didn’t know which he liked the prospect of the least, walking for who knew how long, or taking a kayak down a piranha infested river.

Dr. Bravestone rubbed a hand over his mouth, deep in thought. “I think it’s a risk we’ll have to take,” he said. “We can’t have that other person getting to the Golden City first if it’s true that it’ll allow them to rule Jumanji.”

After inspecting the kayaks to be sure there were no nasty surprises waiting for them, they split into groups and set out on the river. Dr. Bravestone, Mouse, and Ruby took the lead, followed closely by Alex, Bethany, and Fridge, while Jefferson and Shelly managed to keep pace with Spencer, Martha, and Ming. Shelly had always considered himself a quick study, and it proved true then as he picked up on how to move the oars in order to help Jefferson steer.

Crystal blue water lapped at the sides of the kayak, swishing around the oars as they bobbed along the slow moving river. Beyond the occasional comment from Fridge or Spencer, or direction from Dr. Bravestone, the only other sounds were birds twittering in the distance and, once or twice, monkey calls. A scarlet macaw swooped by overhead, followed shortly by a second. Vines dangled from branches that arched over the edge of the river, causing them to duck and push the leaves out of their way as they passed beneath. It was incredibly peaceful, if one forgot the piranhas swimming around below.

Shelly noticed as they rounded a bend in the river that he could still see the smoke from the crashed biplane. That explained the quicksand. The river was close enough that there was also likely a swamp further in, which would dampen even the nearby ground. He looked ahead again. Jefferson had gone to great lengths to save his life, hadn’t let go for even a moment, despite the fact they both could have died. 

Jefferson glanced back at him. “This is actually kind of fun, huh?” he said with a smile.

“Surprisingly, yes. It’s nice,” Shelly replied, returning his smile. “And this sort of experience may be useful in the future, if we do go on another expedition.”

“I’d be surprised if we didn’t,” Jefferson chuckled. He used his oar to nudge their kayak around a large rock. “And even if we don’t, there’s always doing something like this just for the hell of it.”

Shelly hummed thoughtfully. “What do you do when we aren’t adventuring?” he asked. If there was ever a moment to get to know Jefferson better, it was then.

“Not much. Mostly I get hired to fly rich people to their snooty vacation spots,” Jefferson said, shaking his head. “I’d been trained to fly in the war, you know? But by the time I was able to actually do what I’d been trained for, it was pretty much over.” His tone was a little bitter.

“Maybe that’s a good thing, because it means you’re alive and here,” Shelly replied after a moment. “I don’t doubt your skills at all, but war…” He wasn’t sure how to explain his thoughts. Shelly had no fond memories of that time. Jefferson was brave and honorable, so to him it would have been the right thing to do. And it was, of course.

Jefferson nodded. “I get what you mean. And yeah, I thought about it that way.” He huffed. “I don’t know if all this is any less dangerous, but I think I prefer it. It’s definitely much better than piloting rich assholes around.”

Shelly laughed. “I’m sure.”

The kayak jostled. Frowning, Shelly glanced over the side. Once his eyes focused past his reflection he saw nothing unusual. Which meant it was likely just a rock beneath the water. As long as it didn’t make a hole in the bottom of the kayak, then it was fine. 

The kayak shook again. Shelly’s grip tightened on his oar. “Are you seeing any rocks below us?” he asked.

“No…” Jefferson leaned to the right, peering into the water. “At least not now. I could’ve missed them.”

Movement out of the corner of Shelly’s eye caused his head to snap up in alarm. A dark shape sped through the water towards Alex, Bethany, and Fridge’s kayak. “Look out!” he called.

Alex turned just as an enormous snake reared up out of the water to strike. Bethany screamed, and Fridge smacked it in the face with his oar. It dropped back into the water.

“Anaconda!” Fridge shouted, alerting the others.

The anaconda rammed into the side of the kayak, making it tip dangerously to one side. Alex righted them with his oar and sped up his paddling. “Faster!”

Fridge and Alex paddled furiously, trying to swerve around the anaconda as it sped for them again. It knocked into the back of the kayak, causing them to turn sideways. The anaconda burst from the water with a loud hiss. Alex smacked it in the side, and Fridge whacked it over the head again.

“Shelly, can you keep the kayak straight?” Jefferson asked.

“I can try,” Shelly said.

Jefferson nodded. He tucked the oar into the front end of the kayak and against his legs. Pulling out the pistol from earlier and clicking off the safety, he aimed at the water. “Come on… Where are you…”

There was a loud crack, followed by a spray of water. 

“What the fuck are you doing!?” Fridge exclaimed as he and Alex worked to turn the kayak the right way around.

“Trying to shoot the anaconda!” Jefferson snapped back. 

“You almost hit us!”

Jefferson ignored his complaint, gaze searching the water again. It was clear of blood, meaning he’d missed. 

“There!” Shelly exclaimed. “To the left!”

“I see it.” Jefferson fired again, steady despite the recoil. “Damn!”

“Stop!” Ruby called back to them. “You’ll waste whatever bullets you have! We’ll just try and outrun it!”

Jefferson clicked the safety back into place and tucked the pistol away. He grabbed the oar and started paddling again. “I really thought I had it,” he muttered.

Spencer gave a shout as his kayak was sent spinning into the middle of the river. Ming managed to keep it from flipping, and she and Spencer quickly tried to stop the spin. But now they were facing backwards.

“Paddle the opposite way,” Ming said. 

As they did, Dr. Bravestone and Ruby angled their kayak towards them. When they got close, Dr. Bravestone helped turn them back to the front with his oar. The anaconda struck from the water, aiming right for Martha. With a scream and her eyes screwed shut, Martha punched it in the snout. Ming smacked the disoriented snake away with her oar.

They all paddled faster, speeding along the river as best they could while avoiding rocks and low hanging branches. 

“Does anyone see the anaconda?” Alex shouted.

“No!”

“Not over here!”

“Nothing!” Jefferson looked back over his shoulder at Shelly. “Do you think we should slow down and check?”

Shelly really didn’t want to, but he nodded. They both slowed their paddling. However, their kayak kept speeding forward. The current beneath them rushed them along, gaining speed. “Oh no…”

“Rapids ahead!” Dr. Bravestone called back to them.

No sooner had he said it than they found themselves careening down an incline in a spray of water. It was a fight to keep the kayaks from tipping over and smacking into more rocks, the river hurling them this way and that. The river dipped down again, bouncing the kayaks around. 

And then it was nothing but a downward dive. They were thrown against rocks and each other. Water crashed over the sides of the kayak, drenching Shelly. He couldn’t see, the water clinging to his glasses. Shelly cried out as his oar was knocked from his hands. All he could do was grip the sides of the kayak and hope for the best. Shouts and screams filled the air. The world spun and Shelly was plunged into the water. 

The current yanked him around. Shelly managed to breach the surface long enough to catch a breath before being pulled under again. It was lost a moment later as he was slammed into a rock. Shelly struggled to the surface again, lungs burning as he coughed up water. The roar of the river in his ears was nearly deafening. There was a shout from somewhere up ahead. Shelly yelped as he was flung over the edge of a waterfall and sent crashing into the pool below.

Everything was quiet. Bubbles escaped Shelly’s mouth as he sunk towards the sandy bottom. His clothes were weighing him down. His boots connected with the ground and he pushed, propelling himself up. Shelly broke through the surface with a gasp. He could still barely see, but he was able to make out the shapes of his friends nearby, also trying to stay afloat. The current from the churning water tugged at him, but it was nowhere near as strong as before, and he was able to swim against it, aiming for what he hoped was land.

Shelly crawled out onto solid ground and collapsed on his side, chest heaving. Someone hauled themselves up beside him, and he felt a slightly calloused hand on his cheek.

“Shelly?” Jefferson croaked, breathing just as hard.

“’m okay,” Shelly managed to reply. 

“Good,”Jefferson said with a sigh. His hand fell away, and he sat up. 

Shelly missed it immediately, but there was no time for that. He pushed himself up onto his knees, removing his glasses and shaking them off. There was nothing to use to clean them off properly, but it got some of the water droplets. Pressing them back into place, Shelly looked around.

Dr. Bravestone helped Spencer and Martha from the water, while Ruby and Mouse managed to get out on their own. Ming scrambled out a moment later, looking more annoyed than anything. Both Alex and Fridge were trying to help Bethany get to the edge of the water, and then everyone was finally on dry land.

Shelly got to his feet, swayed a little, then oriented himself. It wasn’t pleasant being completely soaked, but at least the water and the air were warm.

“Is everyone alright?” Dr. Bravestone asked, looking over them all with concern. When everyone responded positively, he relaxed a little. “Alright, good. Good…” He turned, rubbing a hand over his head as he surveyed the area.

“Oh… the map…” Shelly pulled the map from his jacket. It was wet, but still legible. He gave a little sigh of relief, even as the drums started up again.

“New level?” Bethany asked.

“New level,” Shelly confirmed. “Level Ten: The Shadowed Wilds.” Which, considering they were standing at the edge of a rainforest, made some sense. “Actually… We’re not far off from where we were trying to go. If we get through this section of rainforest, it will lead straight into the Bosajabe Jungle.”

“I doubt it will be that easy,” Ming said, crossing her arms. “But do we really have a choice?”

“No,” Ruby replied with a shake of her head. She smiled. “When do things ever go easy for us anyway?”

Ming dipped her head in a single nod, smirking. “True.”

“Then let’s get going. There’s no reason to stick around here,” Dr. Bravestone said. He turned to Mouse, who pulled a machete from his bag and handed it over. Dr. Bravestone nodded his thanks and lead the way into the rainforest. 

It was clear almost as soon as they started that it would be slow going. With parts of the ground flooded or just plain mud, and other parts hidden beneath large arching roots, they had to be sure of where they stepped. Beams of light from the setting sun made it through the thick canopy above, but only just. 

“We’ll have to find a place to rest soon,” Alex pointed out. “Before night. There’s no getting through this in the dark.”

Dr. Bravestone glanced over his shoulder. “Everyone keep an eye out for a dry patch of land. Or anything that looks like a place we could set up a camp.”

Frogs chirping and the quiet crackle of the campfire they had managed to get started were the reigning sounds of the night. Alex had taken up the task of cooking, having gotten used to doing so during his time trapped in Jumanji before. Everyone else was gathered around the fire talking and laughing.

Except Shelly. After setting his helmet and jacket by the fire to dry, he had gone off on his own, but not too far. Shelly looked up through a break in the canopy at the stars. It was a challenge, but he’d managed to spot Ursa Minor. Shelly looked back down at the map. They would need to go a little further west. It would be a lot easier if he had a compass.

“Hey—”

“AH!” Shelly whirled around, eyes wide.

Jefferson’s brows rose, and he lifted his hands. “Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Oh… No. It’s okay. I was just thinking… Really it’s my fault, I should be more alert,” Shelly replied, shaking his head. 

“Is everything okay?” Jefferson asked, walking over. “You just kind of took off.”

Shelly tilted his head. “Yes, everything’s fine? I was checking our direction against the stars. I needed a bit of darkness so I could see them,” he explained with a half-smile. Shelly folded the map back up and tucked it into his pants pocket. When he looked back up, Jefferson was even closer, backlit by the red-orange glow of the distant campfire. 

Jefferson looked up at the sky. “Ursa Minor, right?” His voice was quiet, to be heard only by them.

“It is,” Shelly replied softly. “You know the constellations?”

“Yeah. I used to look at the stars with my dad when I was a kid,” Jefferson admitted, wistful. He laughed. “Night or day, I’ve always loved the sky.”

Shelly smiled, warmth curling around his heart. That Jefferson trusted him enough to open up about himself… it made him feel so lucky. “It was my mother who was quite the fan of constellations,” Shelly shared. “Of course, that was a very long time ago.”

Jefferson returned his gaze to Shelly. His expression was hard to read, but rather serious. He moved closer, hands rising up to cup Shelly’s face. “I thought I almost lost you today,” Jefferson said, intense, but tender.

Did he mean what Shelly thought he meant? The words he had wanted to say as he sunk into the quicksand came rushing back, but got caught in his throat. “Jefferson…” Shelly’s voice left him in a whisper. Of course, they  _were_ friends. Perhaps Shelly was reading too much into it. The caress of thumbs over his cheeks had his eyes fluttering shut.

A soft breath ghosted across Shelly’s lips, noses bumped, and then Jefferson was kissing him. Any thoughts left in Shelly’s mind fizzled out instantly. His heart pounded against his chest, the scent of leather and faded cologne surrounded him.

But then Jefferson was pulling away. “Sorry, was that okay?” he asked. “I just kind of assumed, but I should’ve asked.”

_Oh._ Shelly’s hand came up to rest over one of Jefferson’s. “That was more than okay,” he assured, feeling the heat rising in his cheeks. Shelly was sure Jefferson could feel it, too. 

“So I can do it again?”

“Please.”

This time when Jefferson kissed him, Shelly was prepared for the brush of slightly chapped lips against his own. He leaned into it, despite being unsure of himself. Jefferson didn’t seem to mind, instead moving a hand back to thread his fingers through Shelly’s hair. The other fell to Shelly’s waist, before circling to the small of his back, warm and sure. Shelly sighed into the kiss, fingers curling into the front of Jefferson’s leather jacket. 

Shelly was the one to break the kiss the second time, needing to breathe and ground himself. It was all so overwhelming.

Jefferson leaned his forehead against Shelly’s. “I’ve been wanting to do that for so long,” he said. His grin was dazzling. 

“You have?” Shelly asked in wonder. Part of him wasn’t even sure this was real and not a very nice dream. It felt real, though. Shelly desperately hopped it was.

“Since we beat Van Pelt,” Jefferson confessed, gently rubbing Shelly’s back. “I don’t know why I didn’t. Nerves, I guess. But I’m glad I did now.”

Shelly flattened his palms against Jefferson’s chest. He smiled. “I’m glad you did, too.” 

When they returned to the campfire, no-one said anything. However, Bethany gave Shelly a knowing smile and a discreet thumbs up.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all so much for reading and leaving comments and kudos! Truly, they never fail to make me smile. So I hope you enjoy this next chapter, too.

Bethany sighed as the rain poured down on them. It was a bit of a relief from the sauna that was the rainforest. Still, it made the roots and vines more slippery and she was thankful she’d chosen a more practical outfit back at The Oasis. 

“Gotta say, this is a lot more fun when I’m me,” Fridge said, hopping from one root to the one beside her. “But I kinda miss knowing a lot about animals.”

“Yeah?” Bethany asked, brows raised.

“Yep. Then I’d know if that frog glaring at me is poisonous or not,” Fridge replied, pointing up and to the right. A little green and blue tree frog stared at them with big red eyes from where it clung to a tree.

Bethany laughed. “That’s just a tree frog. There were a lot of them in Costa Rica.”

“A red-eyed tree frog— Agalychnis callidryas . Despite the colors, they’re not poisonous or venomous,” Mouse said, finally catching up to them. “But usually they’re nocturnal. We must have startled it.”

Fridge shrugged. “As long as it doesn’t try to kill me, I don’t care.”

Bethany watched the tree frog climb up into the leafy vines that covered the rest of the trunk. “I really wish my phone worked here. I could’ve gotten such a cute shot of it.” She shook her head and kept walking.

“We’re going through some mud, now! Be careful and go slow,” Dr. Bravestone announced. He tested the ground with his machete as they walked, clearly wary of any potential quicksand pits.

As much as Bethany had grown fond of the outdoors, she still hated mud. She grimaced as she waded through the ankle deep muck. Catching up with Martha and Ruby, she couldn’t help but listen to their conversation.

“You’re learning aikido because of me?” Ruby asked.

Martha nodded. “I’ve never really been into working out, to be honest. It’s not my thing. Though, I think maybe it was partially due to it being a requirement to graduate. Anyway, aikido has been kind of fun, and I can learn at my own pace,” she replied, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

Ruby smiled a little. “I’m glad being me wasn’t all bad, then.”

“No, of course it wasn’t! Just weird, mostly, because I wasn’t me,” Martha said. “I hope it’s not weird to say, but, I really admire you. You’ve clearly worked hard to have all the skills you do.”

“That’s understandable. And thank you… I don’t know if I’ve ever had anyone look up to me before…” Ruby ducked under the arch of a huge tree root. She looked over at Martha. “When we have a spare moment, maybe I could teach you a few moves?”

Martha’s eyes widened and she grinned. “Really? That would be great.”

Bethany was glad everyone was getting along; it was so much better than dealing with teammates arguing. Especially Fridge and Spencer, who were talking about something or other up ahead. Dr. Bravestone turned to them, and whatever he said had them both laughing.  Her gaze landed on Shelly and Jefferson as they walked side-by-side, arms brushing every once and awhile.  _Yep, so much better_ , she thought with a smile. 

“I noticed that, too,” Alex said.

Bethany gave a start, not having noticed him approach. She looked at him. “Huh?”

Alex nodded in Shelly and Jefferson’s direction. “Those two.”

“Yeah? I mean, in any other situation it’d be totally obvious, but I didn’t know anyone else had noticed,” Bethany said with a giggle.

“I don’t know if anyone else has. If they have, no-one’s said anything  that I know of ,” Alex replied, shrugging. “Figured the reason I did was because I knew Jefferson had a thing for him.”

Bethany’s eyes widened. “You did?”

“Mhm. See, when I was stuck as Jefferson, after a while, I started feeling some of his emotions. A couple of his thoughts would pop through sometimes, too,” Alex explained. He held some vines out of the way, allowing Bethany to pass through first. “It was weird. At first I thought I was going nuts, you know? But then I realized what was going on.”

That was a surprise. Bethany figured it made a kind of sense—or about as much sense as anything else that happened because of Jumanji. But that brought up another question… Had Alex really felt something for her? Or had it just been because of Jefferson’s feelings for Shelly?

“… makes me feel bad for Peter,” Alex continued.

“Hm?” Bethany looked up at him.

Alex gave a vague gesture. “You know, ‘cause he was stuck in here as long as I was, but as Jurgen. It’s no wonder he was confused, if he’d been affected by that psycho’s thoughts and emotions for so long.”

“Oh my god! You’re so right,” Bethany murmured, horrified. “That’s… I  can’t even , just… Wow.”

“Yeah.” Alex was quiet for a few moments. He glanced at Bethany out of the corner of his eyes. “It wasn’t so bad with Jefferson. And it didn’t happen a lot…” Alex rubbed the back of his neck. “Just, so you know.”

Bethany stumbled a little on the slippery vine she’d been stepping over. “Oh.” She wasn’t sure how else to respond. Still, she gave him a small smile so he wouldn’t think she wasn’t appreciative of the assurance, because she was.  _Go with the flow,_ Bethany reminded herself. 

“Hey, there’s something over here!” Ruby called out from where she’d climbed up onto a rock. She moved carefully over some roots and onto a dryer patch of ground. She stopped, and looked back over her shoulder. “Mouse, can you hand me the binoculars?”

Mouse struggled after her, but managed to get to her side. He handed over the binoculars as everyone gathered by Ruby, where she stood on a small ledge. Below was a little valley, with gatherings of huge leaves, branches, and other plants. “Those look like nests,” he said with a frown.

Ruby lifted the binoculars to her eyes and peered down into the nests. “Ah. I thought so. There’s something inside one of them.” She gave the binoculars back to Mouse, and slid down the incline to the valley. Ruby looked around. Nothing happened. She crept forward and hopped into the nest. “It’s flares!” she shouted to them, picking up the box.

“Why would there be flares in a giant nest?” Shelly asked, tilting his head.

“Because video game logic,” Spencer replied with a shrug. He frowned. “I don’t like it, though. Usually if something’s set up like this, it’s a trap.”

Mouse gasped. “Ruby! Get out of there! Those are Eastern Lowland Gorilla nests!”

“And there they are!” Ming pointed across the valley.

A massive gorilla stood on the other side, flanked by several slightly smaller ones. Ruby looked up to see the leader stand up on his back legs, throwing nearby leaves into the air.

“Everybody, back up slowly,” Mouse instructed, already doing so.

The lead gorilla grunted, beat his chest, and slapped a nearby tree. Ruby backed out of the nest. With a furious snarl that showed giant fangs, the gorilla slammed the ground with both hands. He charged. Ruby spun on her heel and ran.

“Run!” Mouse shouted.

They did. Ruby caught up fast, light on her feet as she leaped over the obstacles in her path. Except that left Mouse far behind, trying to outrun the gorillas on their heels. 

Fridge slowed a little. “Give me the bag! That’s probably slowing you down!”

Mouse struggled with the straps of his bag, but finally got them off. He handed it over to Fridge, who slung it over his own back, speeding up again. And it helped. Mouse caught up to Shelly, who had started lagging behind despite Jefferson’s help.

Bethany yelped as something flew over her head. A rock crashed into a tree trunk to her left. The gorillas hooted and snarled, gaining on them. She hurtled a log, stumbled, but kept going. There was no way she was going to get herself mauled by a gorilla.

“Fridge, catch!” Ruby shouted. She tossed him the flares, which he caught easily.

“I hope those flares were worth it!” Fridge shouted, dodging another flung rock. He managed to unzip the bag enough to shove the flares inside.

“They… should… be!” Spencer panted, struggling to keep up. “Wouldn’t… be there… otherwise!”

Water splashed around their ankles as they crossed a small stream. Bethany hoped that didn’t mean more mud or quicksand was up ahead somewhere. If they got stuck while gorillas were after them… She didn’t want to think about it.

“Hey! Up here!” called a familiar feminine voice.

Bethany looked up, seeing someone running along some intertwined branches above them. Nobody thought twice. They scrambled up nearby trees, climbing as fast as they could. The rain made it more difficult, and Bethany almost lost her grip a few times. 

Dr. Bravestone made it to the top first and helped everyone else up. “Mouse—Fridge, get me my boomerang,” he said. Mouse reached into the bag still on Fridge’s back and pulled out the boomerang. As soon as he had it in his hand, Dr. Bravestone hurled it down at the gorillas.  They freaked out, backing off and scattering. The lead gorilla glared up at them, slammed the ground again, and ran off.

“Ahh… my sides hurt…” Spencer groaned, doubling over and clutching his left side.

“That was close, those gor— _Spencer?”_

It was then that Bethany realized why the voice had been familiar.

Spencer looked up. “Mom?”

Spencer’s mom—only looking a little roughed up—ran over, wrapping her arms around him and squeezing him tight . “Spencer! Oh my god, you’re here!” She kissed his head, then pulled back, looking him over with wide, worried eyes. “How did you get here!? Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

“Mom. Mom! I’m okay,” Spencer said, stopping her checking. He pulled her  back into a hug. “I’m so glad you’re alive…”

“Wow,” Fridge muttered, brows raised. “Hey, Ms. Gilpin, how did  _you_ end up here? In this rainforest?”

Ms. Gilpin finally noticed the rest of them. “Anthony? Martha? Bethany? And  _Alex Vreeke?_ You’re all here, too?” She frowned in confusion at the avatars, but her gaze quickly returned to Spencer, softening. “I have no idea how  _I_ got here. Well, I know how I got  _here_ to the rainforest but…”

A snort from behind had them turning fast, ready to fight or run. Bethany blinked, then grinned. “Oh my god.”

Milo stood behind them, ears swiveling back and forth. He pawed at the wide branches below them and took a few steps forward. Both wings were out, however one was drooping slightly.

“Cyclone?” Jefferson asked, tilting his head.

“No, it’s Milo,” Spencer said with a sad smile. “Grandpa Eddie’s friend.”

Ms. Gilpin raised an eyebrow at Spencer. “What do you mean? Honey, did you get sunstroke out here?” She pressed a hand to Spencer’s forehead.

Spencer batted her hand away. “I don’t have sunstroke.”

“It’s a lot to explain,” Martha said. “If there’s a safe spot to rest, we can tell you everything.”

“Oh. Um, yes, over here. I set up a little something when we landed here,” Ms. Gilpin replied, leading them along the branches. She shook her head with a little laugh. “Who knew flying horses were real, huh?” Ms. Gilpin looked back at the avatars. “Oh, I’m sorry. I’m Joann Gilpin, Spencer’s mom. Who are you? Rangers of some kind?”

“I’m Dr. Xander ‘Smolder’ Bravestone, archaeologist and explorer,” Dr. Bravestone said.  H e gestured to the other avatars. “These are my friends and associates. Franklin ‘Mouse’ Finbar, zoologist, weapons handler, and linguistics expert; Ruby Roundhouse, Killer of Men; Professor Sheldon Oberon, renowned cartographer, and also an excellent archaeologist in his own right; Jefferson ‘Seaplane’ McDonnough, he’s our pilot and makes a damn fine margarita; and Ming Fleetfoot, a catburgler, pickpocket, and safe-cracker.”

Ms. Gilpin nodded slowly. “I see… It’s… It’s nice to meet you all,” she said, giving Spencer a quick look before smiling politely at them all. She  pointed ahead of them. “There are some giant mushrooms growing out of the tree. On the other side is the camp I set up.”

“You set up a camp?” Spencer asked.

“Of course. Didn’t I tell you I used to be a Girl Scout?” Ms. Gilpin replied, hopping over to the huge white mushroom on the side of the tree, which was strong enough to hold her weight. They followed her to the other side, where some leaves and sticks had been tied together with vines to make a lean-to. “I haven’t made a fire—the rain made everything too wet and it would be dangerous  what with being in a tree , but there’s been some fruits growing nearby that I was able to get.”

“Impressive,” Alex said, looking around.

“Yeah, really. This is so lit, Ms. Gilpin,” Bethany agreed, smiling at her.

“Thank you, Bethany,” Ms. Gilpin replied. She sat on the branches. “Okay. I’d like to know what’s going on, now.”

And, as they had with Sarah and Alan, they all explained about Jumanji. About the game, how they got sucked into it three times now, the avatars, and everything that had happened in Brantford. 

Ms. Gilpin sat there for a few moments, absorbing the information. She ran her fingers through her hair, shaking her head. “It would all sound ridiculous if I hadn’t just appeared here myself,” she said. Ms. Gilpin looked up at Milo. “And it would explain why a pegasus—why Milo—rescued me.”

Milo snorted and threw his head back.

“Mr. Walker says he was shocked to see you. It was lucky he hadn’t flown far away when you came into the game,” Mouse translated.

“You… can talk to him?” Ms. Gilpin asked, brows raised.

“It’s the linguistics thing,” Fridge explained.

Spencer looked from Milo to his mom. “He rescued you?”

Ms. Gilpin nodded. “I was in the basement with the water heater repair man, and then there was a bright green light and suddenly I was in these strange mountains. A whole bunch of people dressed in furs and leather attacked me out of nowhere, and then Milo swooped down. I didn’t really think too hard about climbing on his back.” She reached up and patted Milo’s nose. “Thank you, by the way. I know I said it before, but now that I know you’ve understood me this whole time… I’m really very grateful.”

Milo’s ears twitched and he neighed.

“We flew from place to place for a while. I don’t know if he was looking for something?” Ms. Gilpin gave Milo a questioning look.

Milo neighed again, then sighed.

“He says he was looking for everyone else. He didn’t know if they’d returned to the game or not, but thought if they had, they’d be able to help,” Mouse told her.

Ms. Gilpin smiled. “That makes sense,” she said. Her smile faded. “Unfortunately, as we were flying over this rainforest, we were attacked by giant wasps. They got Milo’s wing and we landed here.”

Bethany shuddered. “If they’re anything like the giant mosquitoes, I never want to see them  _ever_ .”

Martha sat up straighter. “Wait. We have medipacks. Maybe one of them will heal Milo’s wing?” she suggested.

“I guess it wouldn’t hurt to try,” Dr. Bravestone said. He nodded at Mouse.

Fridge handed Mouse the backpack and he searched through it. “Should probably use one of the small medipacks, just in case,” Mouse said. He pulled out one of the small medipacks and approached Milo. “I’m going to rest this on your back, okay, Mr. Walker?”

Milo nodded. Mouse set the medipack on Milo’s back. In a flash of green it disappeared. Milo stretched his wings, then flapped them. He nickered, rearing his head back.

“He says he feels great,” Mouse explained with a smile.

Snorting, Milo shifted from hoof to hoof, flicking his tail. He turned, jerking his head to the right. Milo snorted again, then looked back at Mouse.

Mouse’s eyes widened. “Really?”

Milo nickered.

“Alright. Well, apparently there’s a village not far from here,” Mouse said, turning back to the group. “He couldn’t get Ms. Gilpin there because of his wing, and it was too dangerous on foot for her, but now he can lead us all there.”


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading everyone! :D Also, PLEASE make not of the rating change and added tags. This chapter brings in the smut, and it'll be obvious when that's about to happen, so if that's not your thing you can avoid it. :) I hope those who do read it like it. ^_^

Bosajabe Village—according to Shelly’s map—was a lot different than Jefferson had expected. Mostly because a majority of it was built up in the trees. Bridges spanned the gaps, hanging at multiple levels and connecting wide, wooden walkways. Electric lanterns hung from branches and the bottoms of the bridges, while neon signs indicated which buildings were shops or restaurants or bars, and whether they were open or closed.

The raised planks creaked beneath their feet as they walked along the main path, Milo’s hooves clopping loudly. Jefferson could see that, even in the event of a major flood, the walkway would stay dry. Down another path, he saw an open, wooden elevator bringing a group of people three stories up to a very busy section of the village.

“Do you think it’s okay we’re here?” Spencer asked, looking around.

“Nobody stopped us,” Bethany said with a shrug.

Dr. Bravestone nodded. “True. But they are watching us.”

He was right. While most villagers went about their day, many had stopped to watch them pass. They talked quietly among themselves, whispering and pointing. Even so, they didn’t appear hostile, but curious. Confused. Jefferson supposed their group did look a little odd.

“Wait. Is it just me, or do some of the villagers look like people from the Oasis?” Bethany asked, frowning a little.

Alex tilted his head. “No. It’s not just you, some of them _do_ look a little familiar.” His brows rose and he turned to Spencer. “You don’t think maybe…”

“Re-used character models?” Spencer finished with a laugh.

Alex chuckled. “Exactly. I mean, with the other tropes Jumanji’s picked out, why not?”

Bethany sighed. “Someone remind me to start playing video games when we get out of here. If getting sucked into Jumanji’s gonna be a regular thing, I want to have some kind of idea what you guys are talking about.”

“I’ll remind you,” Martha laughed.

Ms. Gilpin shook her head and rested her hand on Spencer’s shoulder. “I think I’m actually glad now that you spent so much time playing your games.”

Jefferson huffed, amused, and turned his attention to Shelly. He was looking around the place, clearly fascinated by everything. Jefferson couldn’t help but smile. That was one of the many things he adored about Shelly, his endless curiosity. Shelly caught him staring, and promptly blushed.

“We’re here, but now what?” Ming asked. “Are we going to try and stay the night somewhere?”

“That, and see if we can figure out where to go from here. It’s possible people around here would know where the Golden City is. Or at least rumors of where,” Dr. Bravestone replied.

Fridge snorted. “You’ll have to be the one to ask. NPCs always preferred talking to you when we played.” He shook his head. “But who knows? Everything’s gone crazy, so maybe that’s changed.”

“I don’t know, I didn’t have too much trouble when I was in the game. Sometimes,” Alex remarked. “Some ignored me, but many didn’t.”

“Probably because one of Seaplane’s strengths is charisma,” Spencer pointed out.

Jefferson shrugged a shoulder. It was still weird to know that, by just tapping his chest, he’d have a list of things he was good and bad at. Or that were deadly to him. “We won’t know unless we try,” he said. “We’ve gotta start somewhere.”

Dr. Bravestone nodded. He stepped away from the group and approached two nearby women. “Excuse me, do you have a moment?” Dr. Bravestone asked.

One of the women blushed and whispered something to the blonde woman beside her in a language Jefferson didn’t recognize. Then she smiled up at Dr. Bravestone. “We do,” she said, bringing her long black hair to drape over her brown shoulder.

“Excellent. Is there a place my friends and I could rest for the night,” Dr. Bravestone asked, gesturing to the rest of them.

The blonde woman eyed them, gaze lingering a moment on Jefferson. She said something to the first woman, who giggled.

“Yes. There is an… inn? But you and your friends could stay with us if you prefer?” the black-haired woman offered.

Dr. Bravestone smiled awkwardly. “I appreciate the offer, but we have an important mission to complete. So if you could direct us to the inn?” he replied.

The black-haired woman pouted but nodded. “Yes, of course. We can take you.”

Jefferson caught Shelly’s small frown as they all followed the women down a new path. He reached out and gently brushed Shelly’s hand with his own. When Shelly looked at him, Jefferson smiled. Shelly returned it with a shy smile of his own.

They were led to the elevator Jefferson had spotted earlier. Once they were on, the man operating it gave two tugs on the rope, and it rose. 

“Are you sure none of your friends would like to join us for some fun?” the black-haired woman asked. She looked at Jefferson. “Would  _you?”_

Jefferson felt Shelly tense beside him. “No, thank you,” he replied.

The blonde woman pouted a little and turned away from them. 

“I don’t know, sounds like a good time to me,” Fridge said with a smirk.

Spencer shook his head. “Don’t. We should stick together.”

Fridge groaned. “What, so you get to have a girlfriend but when I see a chance for a good time you cock-block me?” He snapped his mouth shut, giving Ms. Gilpin an apologetic look. “Uh, sorry Ms. Gilpin.”

Ms. Gilpin arched an eyebrow, but the slight quirk of the corner of her lips gave away her amusement. “I’ve heard worse.”

_“Mom!”_

Luckily, the elevator came to a stop at the second level and they were lead off. 

“I’m sorry to ask more of you, but have any of you heard of the Golden City?” Dr. Bravestone asked. 

The black-haired woman frowned in confusion, then turned to speak to her friend. The blonde woman replied in the unknown language. The black-haired woman nodded and looked back at Dr. Bravestone. “Not me. But you could try asking Fatein, our scholar. She might know.”

“That’s great, where can we find her?” Ruby asked.

“The library is above the inn. On the upper walk,” the black-hired woman replied. They rounded a couple of trees before she and her friends stopped. She gestured at the long, two-story building attached to a couple of trees. “Here you go.”

Dr. Bravestone smiled. “Thank you very much. We appreciate your help,” he said.

“Mhm.” The black-haired woman gave Dr. Bravestone another suggestive look before turning away and walking off with her friend.

Jefferson was relieved when he and Shelly retired to their room; a simple two bed arrangement with filmy netted canopies over the dark wood beds. There were enough rooms for everyone if they doubled up—plus an area out back for Milo—and it gave him the much needed excuse to have Shelly all to himself. Shelly, for his part, looked lost in thought.

“Is everything okay?” Jefferson asked, shucking his jacket and draping it over the back of a wooden chair that was tucked into a corner. He turned down the thin cream sheets on the bed. It was warm in the room, so he doubted he’d pull them back up anyway.

“Hm? Oh, yes…” Shelly said, taking off his helmet. He fiddled with it for a moment before setting it on the second bed.

Jefferson walked over to him, taking Shelly’s hand in his. “Are you sure?”

“It’s nothing. Just… I suppose I’m surprised you didn’t take those women up on their offer,” Shelly replied, looking at the floor.

“And why would I do that? I’m with you,” Jefferson said, shaking his head. How could Shelly think he’d go off with some random villagers?

Shelly met his gaze. “So you do actually want me?”

Jefferson was baffled. He pressed a palm against Shelly’s cheek. “Of course I do. Did I do something to make you think I don’t?” he asked, distressed. Jefferson couldn’t think of anything—except maybe it was because he didn’t make it obvious to everyone? Did Shelly think he was keeping them a secret? Jefferson was pretty sure Alex knew, and possibly Bethany, but he just hadn’t thought to bring it up.

“No! No, it’s just that, well, yesterday was filled with so much danger, and adrenaline was running high, and sometimes when things calm down and people have a chance to really think about things they realize things are different than they thought,” Shelly rambled, his beautiful brown eyes watery. “And those two were really very pretty, so I wouldn’t have blamed you if you thought, perhaps, they’d be better company—”

The rest of Shelly’s words were lost to Jefferson’s lips. Jefferson pressed him up against the nearest wall, gripping at his waist and causing Shelly to gasp, a sweet little sound that had Jefferson wanting to hear more. Shelly grasped his arms, but didn’t push him away. Jefferson smirked against Shelly’s soft lips. He pulled back enough to look into his heavy-lidded eyes. “Why do you think I wanted to share a room with you, hm?” Jefferson asked, squeezing his hip.

Shelly blinked at him, looking a little dazed.

“I don’t want them. I want  _you,”_ Jefferson said. He leaned in again, pressing a kiss to Shelly’s bearded jaw. “It has nothing to do with an adrenaline high.”

“O-okay,” Shelly murmured, voice trembling. 

Jefferson moved his hand to the wall and pressed his thigh between Shelly’s, causing his breath to hitch. “And I want to enjoy having this room all to ourselves. If you want that, too,” he added, leaning back again to look at Shelly properly.

Shelly licked his lips. “I… I’ve read things, and know the basic idea, I’ve just never… But I’d like to,” he said, cheeks turning a very impressive shade of red.

That was a little unexpected, but Jefferson didn’t mind. “We only have to do what you’re comfortable with, okay? If you’re not ready, please tell me,” he said, moving his hand from the wall to rest on Shelly’s other hip.

“I appreciate your concern, but I am ready,” Shelly replied with more conviction. He leaned forward, brushing his lips against Jefferson’s, hands moving to rest on his shoulders. It was still shy, but the fact that he initiated it at all was progress.

Jefferson grinned into the kiss. He pressed his thigh up and Shelly gave a startled moan, which he took advantage of, tongue slipping between his parted lips. He tasted like the mangoes from their dinner earlier. Shelly’s hips rocked against Jefferson’s thigh, another moan escaping him. He was already a little hard. Jefferson turned his attention back to Shelly’s jaw, then down his neck. 

Except Shelly’s shirt collar was in his way. Which just meant it would have to go. Jefferson tugged at Shelly’s jacket, and Shelly quickly picked up on what he wanted and helped to shrug it off. Jefferson tossed it in the vague direction of the second bed. He worked Shelly’s bow tie loose with dexterous fingers, then dropped it on the floor. 

“Fuck, you wear too many layers,” Jefferson groaned against Shelly’s throat, popping open the first couple buttons of his shirt. 

“Sorry,” Shelly panted. His fingers fumbled with the buttons of Jefferson’s own shirt.

It turned into a whimper as Jefferson laid claim to his neck, sucking a bruise into the soft skin. Jefferson loved the way Shelly smelled of old books and coffee, knowing he must drink it a lot for it to still be noticeable even now. He kissed his way back to Shelly’s lips as he freed the last of the buttons on Shelly’s waistcoat, and then that was gone, too, joining the bow tie on the floor.

Jefferson hadn’t noticed his shirt was open until Shelly’s fingers splayed against his stomach. Heat pooled low in his gut as they glided up to his chest, stroking through his chest hair. It took all his willpower not to just rip Shelly’s shirt off in his need to touch him. Jefferson rubbed his thigh up against Shelly, causing him to drop his head back against the wall with a loud moan. 

“Jefferson,” Shelly gasped, pawing at his chest, his arms, his belt, back to his arms, unsure what to do. 

He looked absolutely debauched already, kissed-pink lips parted to allow little moans and whimpers through, dark eyes blown with lust, golden brown hair mussed. Jefferson couldn’t wait to see what he looked like when he’d properly gotten his hands on him. “I’ve got you,” Jefferson purred into his ear as he pushed Shelly’s shirt off. “Let me make you feel good, hmm?”

“I want you to feel good, too,” Shelly said, voice breathy.

“Trust me, I feel really damn good,” Jefferson chuckled. He shifted, moving his thigh out from between Shelly’s. Jefferson pressed against him, grinding their hips together with a groan. “See?”

Shelly moaned, hips twitching forward against his.  _“Oh!”_

Jefferson kissed the crook of his neck, hands dropping to grab and knead Shelly’s plump ass. He’d been wanting to do that, and it felt so nice in his hands. More moans spilled from Shelly’s lips. Grinning, Jefferson slid his hands around and between them. He got Shelly’s belt undone, letting it hit the floor with a heavy thunk, then his pants.

“Wait, wait… Boots…” Shelly panted, pulling back.

“Right. Forgot,” Jefferson said with a small laugh. 

They both undressed the rest of the way before Jefferson pushed him back onto his bed. It was then, however, that Shelly looked nervous. He’d clamped his thighs together, and his arms were drawn up against his chest.

Jefferson reached out to rub his hip. “Hey, are you still okay with this?”

“Y-yes,” Shelly replied, nodding.

“Then relax. Let me see you.” Jefferson’s fingers sunk into Shelly’s supple thighs, urging them open so he could settle between them. He leaned over him and took hold of Shelly’s wrists, bringing his arms up and around Jefferson’s shoulders. Jefferson smiled, gaze raking appreciatively over Shelly. The way moonlight glistened off the sheen of sweat that slicked the curves and rolls of his body. “Beautiful.”

Not giving Shelly a chance to protest if he wanted to, Jefferson kissed him. He caressed Shelly’s arms, let his hands roam to his shoulders, down his sides and back up to cup his chest. Jefferson leaned back, watching Shelly’s face as he rubbed the pad of his thumb over a nipple. Shelly whimpered, pressing his chest up into Jefferson’s hand. His cock throbbed between his legs. As much as Jefferson wanted to draw things out, he couldn’t. But he could make up for it.

“As soon as we’re back in America, I’m taking you home,” Jefferson promised, moving a hand down between them and wrapping his fingers around Shelly’s length. His hand slid up and down, wrist twisting at the top, wringing pretty sounds from Shelly. “And then I’m really gonna take my time with you. Kiss you  _everywhere.”_ Jefferson sucked another mark into Shelly’s neck, felt him clutching at his back. “Take you apart with my fingers and tongue, ‘till you’re begging me for more.”

Shelly moaned louder than ever. “Jefferson, please!”

“Just like that,” Jefferson praised. He let go and moved down Shelly’s body. There were some things it was just too hard to resist. Shelly spread his legs invitingly, and who was Jefferson to deny him? He nibbled at the soft inside of his thigh, stroking along the outside with his hand, making Shelly quiver with need. Jefferson kissed and licked his way up to the crease between thigh and hip. Shelly’s hands flew to his hair, gripping.

“Ah! You’re… teasing me,” Shelly panted accusingly.

Jefferson looked up at him. Winked. The rosy flush in Shelly’s cheeks flooded down to his chest. “Maybe a little,” he replied. Jefferson took Shelly’s twitching cock into his mouth. He sucked, tongue flicking and swirling over the head. Shelly clasped a hand over his mouth, muffling himself.

Jefferson pulled off, licking his lips. “I want to hear you,” he said, rubbing Shelly’s thighs as he sat back on he heels.

Shelly looked up at him, brows furrowed. “What if the others hear?”

“The walls are pretty thick. But if you want, let me worry about it instead. If you get too loud, I’ll handle it, alright?” Jefferson asked, rubbing his round belly. 

“Okay,” Shelly sighed, relaxing. “I trust you.”

Jefferson smiled, adoration warming his chest. He kissed Shelly, then looked over at the table beside the bed. He leaned to the side and opened the drawer, hoping there would be something he could use to move things along. Jefferson gave a little sigh of relief. There were condoms and a bottle of lube. Either this was normal for the inn, or Jumanji felt like being nice. He grabbed both. Jefferson set them on the bed and turned back to Shelly, who’s eyes were wide. “Can you roll over for me, baby?” The endearment rolled off his tongue so easily, he hadn’t even thought about it.

Shelly hesitated, then did so, settling on his hands and knees. “Like this?” he asked, voice wobbly.

“Perfect,” Jefferson said. He brushed aside Shelly’s soft hair and bent to kiss the back of his neck. His fingertips skimmed along the curve of Shelly’s side, then pressed into his waist. “I’d rather see your face, but this way will hurt less, okay?”

“Oh. Oh, alright,” Shelly replied, sounding relieved. 

Jefferson squeezed his ass, enjoying the way Shelly squeaked in surprise. He laughed, pressing his lips to his shoulders before trailing kisses down his spine. Jefferson picked up the lube and poured some onto his fingers. Spreading him open with one hand, he dipped his fingers down, brushing them over Shelly’s pink rim. Shelly gasped, arms buckling. Jefferson did it again, before pressing one into his warm body. He wanted to taste Shelly, make him loose and sloppy on his tongue.  _Next time_ , Jefferson thought.

“Ah!” Shelly dropped forward. He curled his hands into the pillow beneath his head, pushing his hips back against Jefferson’s finger. It didn’t seem to matter that his glasses were now crooked.

Jefferson reached around to stroke his cock. “You’re doing so good,” he crooned, easing in a second finger after a few moments. When Shelly winced and whimpered, Jefferson placated him with gentle kisses. “Breathe. You have to stay relaxed, okay?”

Shelly nodded, trying to do as he said. As his body relaxed, Jefferson pumped and spread his fingers, stretching him. Shelly moaned, rocking back into his thrusts. “Oh, that… That feels—AH!”

“There.” Jefferson curled his fingers again, brushing against that spot deep inside. Shelly cried out, trembling. He looked overwhelmed. Jefferson let go of his cock and pet his hip, kissing his shoulder. When Shelly was no longer clenching around his fingers, he worked in a third. He wanted no chance of hurting Shelly. This was meant to make him feel good, to show him just how much he meant to Jefferson. 

_“Jefferson_ … please…  _Uhn!_ Please,” Shelly pleaded. “More.”

Jefferson groaned. He loved the sound of Shelly begging for him. “Yeah? Are you sure?”

Shelly nodded. He looked at him over his shoulder. “I don’t know how much longer I’ll last. I want to feel you. Please.”

Once again, there was no way Jefferson could refuse. “Okay. Okay. I’ve got you.” He pulled his fingers free and grabbed the condom. He tore it open with his teeth and rolled it onto his aching cock. Now that he was paying attention, he was so hard he didn’t know how much longer he himself would last. 

Jefferson knew he’d said that being on his hands and knees would be easier for Shelly, but he also really, really wanted to see his face. Wanted to watch him come undone, because of him. He pressed against Shelly’s hips. “On your back,” Jefferson panted. “Wanna see you properly.”

Shelly didn’t protest, rolling over easily and spreading his legs. Jefferson grinned and kissed him. He lifted one of Shelly’s legs, folding it back towards his chest and opening him further. Jefferson lined himself up and slowly, carefully, pushed inside. Shelly’s shout was muffled against Jefferson’s lips.

“Shh… It’s okay,” Jefferson soothed, not moving a muscle. It was hard as hell, especially with Shelly’s body squeezing the head of his cock, but he did it. He brought Shelly’s legs to his waist, then leaned down to press kisses to his face. “’s okay. You’re being so good for me. Relax.”

Shelly wrapped his arms around Jefferson, pulling him down for a kiss. It was languid, sweet, perfect, allowing Jefferson to take his own advice and relax. He inched deeper as Shelly went lax. Shelly moaned into his mouth, fingers digging into Jefferson’s back. But he managed to stay relaxed enough for Jefferson to sink those final few inches with a punched out groan.

Jefferson rested their foreheads together, gazing into his eyes as he reached up to adjust Shelly’s glasses. Shelly blinked up at him, then laughed softly. It made him tighten around Jefferson, causing them both to moan.

“Is… Is it normal to feel so full?” Shelly asked, sounding a little awed.

“I don’t know. But is that a good thing to you?” Jefferson replied, brushing the back of his fingers along Shelly’s cheek. 

Shelly hummed contentedly, eyes slipping shut for a moment as he leaned into the touch. “I think so? Yes.”

“Then that’s all that matters.” Jefferson kissed his neck and allowed his hands to wander. Petting, squeezing, fondling everything within reach. Shelly was just so soft, and Jefferson loved it. And with the little sighs and moans escaping him, it seemed Shelly didn’t mind the attention one bit.

“Jefferson?”

“Mhm?”

“You can move. Please?”

_Thank god,_ Jefferson thought. He drew back a little, then thrust back in. Shelly moaned louder, short nails digging into Jefferson’s back. With that encouragement, Jefferson worked up to a slow but steady pull and push. Shelly caught on to the rhythm quickly, rolling his hips up to meet his thrusts. 

“Fuck… you feel so good...” Jefferson panted, rocking a little faster. The clenching, wet heat of Shelly’s body around his cock, Shelly’s own erection trapped between them and rubbing against their stomachs, it was more than good, but getting any coherent thought out was becoming more difficult.

_It could be even better though._ Jefferson grabbed one of Shelly’s thighs and hiked it up higher, changing the angle. Shelly’s cry of pleasure was muffled by Jefferson’s lips on his. Jefferson thrust harder, aiming for that bundle of nerves again. And again. The creaking of the bed filled the room, mingled with their moans and gasps.

“I’m—I’m gonna—Ah!” Shelly mewled, writhing against the sheets.

Jefferson worked his hand between them and stroked Shelly’s cock. “Come on. Do it. Cum.”

That was all Shelly needed. His back arched and he came with a wail, Jefferson too slow to quiet him. It was the last thing on his mind. Shelly had clamped down around him, squeezing Jefferson’s cock perfectly. Jefferson managed one, two, three final thrusts before white hot pleasure overtook him.

The ringing in Jefferson’s ears faded, and his awareness returned bit by bit. Arms were curled around his back, Shelly’s chest rising and falling beneath his own. Jefferson felt the light scratch of Shelly’s beard against his neck and jaw. He placed lazy kisses to Shelly’s shoulder before propping himself up on his forearms.

Jefferson swept aside a few stray hairs from Shelly’s face. “Hey,” he said with a soft smile.

“Hey,” Shelly replied with a breathy laugh. He bit his lip, looking up at him through his lashes. “That was… it was amazing.”

“Couldn’t agree more,” Jefferson said, kissing him almost chastely. 

“Really?”

“Definitely.” Jefferson pushed himself up and off Shelly, before carefully easing himself out.

Shelly whimpered, nose scrunching in displeasure, but once Jefferson had pulled out, he relaxed again. “I wasn’t expecting to feel so  _sensitive_ after,” he muttered.

Jefferson took off the condom, tied it, and dropped it in the trash can under the nightstand. His brow furrowed and he coaxed Shelly’s legs apart. “That’s expected, but I didn’t hurt you, did I?” he asked, trying to see if he’d torn.

“No, no, you didn’t,” Shelly assured him.

“Oh, good,” Jefferson sighed. He gave Shelly another kiss before standing up. 

Padding into the attached bathroom, he wet a cloth, and returned to the bed. Jefferson cleaned Shelly up with gentle swipes of the cloth while distracting him with more kisses. Before he could clean himself off with the other side, Shelly took the cloth and leaned up to do it instead, kissing his cheek. Shelly’s just as gentle, cleaning off his release from Jefferson’s stomach. After, Jefferson tossed the cloth back into the bathroom and climbed into the bed.

Shelly shifted to one side of the bed at Jefferson’s prompting. “We’re sharing the bed?” he asked, eyes wide.

“Yeah. Unless you don’t want to?” Jefferson replied, tilting his head.

“I want to!” Shelly said hurriedly. He blushed.

Jefferson chuckled and spooned up behind him. “Good.” He plucked Shelly’s glasses from his nose and set them aside on the nightstand. Jefferson draped an arm over Shelly’s waist and kissed the back of his neck; they fit together like puzzle pieces. He found one of Shelly’s hands and covered it with his own, linking their fingers. 

Shelly sighed, going boneless in Jefferson’s arms. “Good night, Jefferson.”

“Good night, Shelly.”


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait everyone, I don't know what time is anymore clearly. Anyway, I'm so happy people enjoyed the last chapter, so I hope you like this one, too.

Lilting birdsong was what woke Shelly. The smell of exotic flowers and petrichor carried on the morning breeze flowed into the room, while sunlight filtered through the gauzy white curtains. Jefferson’s arm was still draped around his middle, his warm palm pressed to Shelly’s chest. Lips brushed against his shoulder.

“Morning,” Jefferson said, voice soft but more awake than Shelly felt.

Shelly turned slightly. “Good morning. How did you know I woke up?”

“Your breathing changed.” Jefferson propped himself up on his elbow and leaned over to kiss Shelly properly.

Either Jefferson was blessed with no morning breath, or Shelly was truly too head-over-heels to not notice, because he happily accepted the kiss. He rolled onto his back so he could return Jefferson’s kiss properly. Feeling a little bold, and a little silly, Shelly said with a smile, “You’re a very handsome blur.”

Jefferson laughed loudly. “Is that right?” He chuckled and leaned over to the nightstand. A quiet clack signaled that it was Shelly’s glasses he was retrieving, and then Jefferson was handing them over. “How do I look now?” Jefferson asked as Shelly put them on.

“Even more handsome,” Shelly said, kissing his cheek with an amused smile. He gazed up into Jefferson’s adoring, mahogany eyes. There was no doubt about it—Shelly was in love with him. But he wasn’t sure if it was too soon to say something, or if Jefferson felt similarly. Of course he knew Jefferson cared for him, was even attracted to him for some reason, but that didn’t mean he was in love. So Shelly remained silent.

“If we don’t get up now, I’ll be tempted to keep you here all day,” Jefferson said with a wink. He gave Shelly another kiss before getting up.

Shelly gave a little huff of a laugh, despite his burning cheeks. He sat up and bit his lip. _Oh._ There were a lot of aches in places he’d never ached before. Shelly glanced at Jefferson and his thoughts fizzled out. The slight ripple of muscles beneath Jefferson’s skin as he picked up and sorted through their clothes was intoxicating. But Jefferson was right, Shelly couldn’t let himself get distracted or they’d never leave the room.

Breakfast was a simple affair of various fruits and, to Shelly’s surprise, fish. Not that he would complain, out of both respect to the owners of the inn, and the fact that he needed the energy. Shelly had slept better than ever, but he was still a bit tired. And sore. Sitting in the open air dinning area had not been a fun experience, and time hadn’t lessened the ache. When he stood up to leave with the others, he couldn’t help but wince.

“Finally. Now maybe you two can stop drooling over each other,” Ming remarked as she passed.

Bethany bit her lip to keep from laughing, though it seemed more at Ming’s comment than at Shelly. Still, Shelly’s eyes widened and his face felt hot. He looked to Jefferson, who’s ears had gone red. But then an easy smile crossed Jefferson’s lips.

“I guess that means we don’t have to worry about telling anyone,” he said with a shrug.

“Only a dead person would have missed it,” Mouse piped up, slinging his bag onto his back.

“True,” Martha said.

Ruby nodded. “Also, that means you owe me twenty dollars when we get back from this,” she told Dr. Bravestone.

“Fair is fair,” Dr. Bravestone agreed.

Shelly gaped. They’d been betting on them? He groaned and hid his face in his hands. “I hate you all,” he muttered.

That earned a laugh from everyone.

They took the elevator from the night before to the next level up. Much like the other buildings, the library was a wooden structure with tiled roofing, though the columns and spandrels were a bit more ornate in their carving. Shelly hoped they would get a chance to come back to the village in the future, its history had to be fascinating.

The interior was like something out of one of Shelly’s dreams; floor to ceiling bookshelves taking up a majority of the walls, tables sequestered between rows, comfortable looking chairs tucked into corners, and a large globe near the back. He would definitely need to come back at some point.

“We’ll come back,” Jefferson spoke up, shooting Shelly a crooked smile.

Shelly blinked, then smiled. “Reading my mind, now?” he asked with a soft laugh.

Jefferson chuckled. “Maybe.”

A brunette woman dressed in a white button up shirt and a modest tan skirt bustled out from behind a bookshelf, several books in her bronzed arms. She noticed them only after she’d set the books on an empty table.

“Hello, I’m sorry to bother you, but are you Fatein?” Dr. Bravestone asked.

The woman blinked, then nodded. “I am. And you are?” she replied in lightly accented English.

Dr. Bravestone introduced himself and the rest of the group. “We were told that you would be the one to ask about a certain subject,” he said.

Fatein crossed her arms. “That would depend on the subject.”

“We’re hoping you know something about the Golden City,” Ruby piped up, hands on her hips.

“Ah… I see…” Fatein’s eyes narrowed. “You are the second people to ask about that.”

Spencer frowned. “Second?”

Fatein nodded. “A man came here yesterday morning asking about it. He was rude. He threatened to kill me if I did not reveal the location to him.” She eyed them. “It is a good thing I only know the rumors. But if they are true, you will have to deal with him.”

Dr. Bravestone stepped closer. “We’re trying to find the city to stop him from getting there first. We’ve heard that if someone were to get to the city, they could rule all of Jumanji. None of us want that, I promise you.”

“Hmm…” Fatein looked them over again, then sighed, pressing her fingers to her temple. She gestured for them to follow her. “Fine. I will tell you what I know, though it is not much.”

“Thank you.”

Fatein led them to another table down a long row near the back of the library. “Sit,” she told them, pointing to the chairs. “Or stand. Just stay here a moment.” Fatein walked off, disappearing behind more bookcases.

“Yesterday?” Martha said, looking up at Dr. Bravestone. “Do you think we’ll catch up in time?”

“We have no choice but to try,” Dr. Bravestone replied.

Ms. Gilpin shook her head. “This is a lot. Spencer, are you sure this is the only way back home?”

Spencer ran his fingers through his hair. “Probably,” he said. “Jumanji seems to be leading us this way.”

Fatein reappeared, a large leather-bound book in her hands. She set it on the table and flipped it open. “This book is a collection of Bosajabe legends. One mentions the Golden City,” she explained, rifling through the pages. She stopped and pointed at a page. “This one. It is only referenced, though. The legend is of a young girl who gets lost in the jungle. At first she is attacked by the animals, but then when she helps a baby crocodile get free from under a log that trapped its tail, she is helped by the old god of the Golden City. She is then returned to her village unharmed, and forever guarded by animals when she travels the jungles.”

“So how does that help us?” Ming asked, peering down at the book.

“Within the legend are some landmarks. Distant mountains and a temple,” Fatein replied. “There are several ruins within the jungle, but only one has a view of mountains. Or used to. I have a map, so I can show you where the ruins  _should_ be.”

Fatein hurried off and returned a moment later with a small map. She uncurled it, using a couple of books to hold down the yellowed edges. “Basajabe Village is here,” she pointed to a spot on the map.

Shelly pulled out the map of Jumanji. He compared the two, nodding to himself.

“The mountains are far to the north east, beyond the jungle. But here,” Fatein pointed to another spot on the map, deep within the jungle. “Here, about a three hour walk from the village, is where I believe the temple to be. Many years ago, the ground was higher and with the right angle, you should have been able to see the mountains. But the ground has been smoothed away by rain and floods and time. If the temple is there, I do not know what condition it will be in. Or how close it may be to the Golden City itself.”

“Guess it’s better than nothing,” Fridge remarked with a shrug.

Ignoring him, Dr. Bravestone smiled at Fatein. “Thank you, Ms. Fatein. This is very helpful,” he told her.

“You are welcome. I only hope you and your friends can stop that stranger from doing something horrible,” Fatein replied, returning his smile.

As the group left the library, Spencer turned to his mom. “Mom, I think you should stay here in the village with Milo. It’ll be safer than coming with us.”

Ms. Gilpin frowned. “And let you go? If it’s dangerous for me, it’s just as dangerous for you. Do you know how much pollen is in a jungle?” she asked, arching an eyebrow.

“I know,” Spencer said with a grimace. “But I also know the game.”

“I don’t like it,” Ms. Gilpin huffed. She shook her head, crossed her arms, sighed. “But fine. I’ll stay—for now. If I feel like something isn’t right I’m following you. I know what direction you’re headed in, and I’m sure Milo can help me track you down.”

Spencer nodded and hugged her. “Okay. We’ll be as safe as we can, though,” he said. “I love you.”

“I love you, too, Spencer.” Ms. Gilpin kissed his forehead.

Not for the first time did Shelly wonder if he should replace his pocket watch with a compass. It would have been far more useful. He would have to remember next time. Shelly picked his way through the underbrush, trying to stay near the front in case they needed to make any turns.

“We need to move as fast as possible. No breaks unless absolutely necessary,” Dr. Bravestone announced, slashing through a particularly thick group of bushes with his machete. He glanced back over his shoulder. “Ruby, I meant to ask before. How many flairs did you get? Are they still functional?”

“They seemed perfectly fine,” Ruby replied. “As for how many…”

A little _ping_ sound indicated Mouse had opened his Inventory screen. “It says four,” Mouse told them. “So we’d better hope we get where we’re going before night.”

“Fatein said it’d take three hours? So we should be able to,” Alex said. 

Ming huffed. “Yeah. If we don’t run into any more gorillas.”

“I doubt Jumanji would hit us with the same thing twice in a row,” Fridge said, shaking his head. “That’d be too easy.”

“Fridge, I swear if you jinxed us I’m pushing you in front of the first gorilla I see,” Martha threatened.

“Same,” Bethany agreed. She and Martha high-fived.

Fridge rolled his eyes and smirked. “Uh-huh, sure. I’d like to see either of you try.”

Bethany laughed. She glanced back at Shelly, then matched her pace to his. “Okay, so, I’ve been wondering for a while… Why’d you get into the whole map thing?” she asked.

Shelly blinked. Of all the topics of conversation she might have started, he hadn’t been expecting that one. “Cartography?”

“Yeah, that.”

“Well, I suppose I’ve always been interested in the world,” Shelly replied. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Jefferson listening intently as well. “I never considered actually exploring it. It didn’t seem suitable for me, personally, despite very much wanting to. I figured cartography would be the closest I would get, aside from going to archaeological digs. But even then it was mostly to make notes on the maps of where artifacts had been found.”

Bethany grinned. “Wow. It’s super cool that you’re now exploring the world like you wanted. Or at least Jumanji.”

Shelly gave a quiet laugh. “Yes, it’s very… cool.”

Before Bethany could ask any more questions, Dr. Bravestone told them all to be quiet. “Look,” he whispered, pointing up to the trees ahead of them in a small clearing.

A large jaguar and two smaller jaguars were draped in the branches high above, sleeping. 

“Do we have to worry about that?” Bethany asked, looking at Mouse.

“If we’re not careful, yes. Jaguars aren’t usually active during the day,” Mouse replied quietly, stepping carefully around some twigs. “But considering how little sunlight is getting through the canopy, they might make an exception. Especially since that mother will want to protect her cubs.”

Watching where they stepped, the group gave a wide birth around the giant tree the jaguars occupied. They were almost to the other side when a branch snapped. The mother jaguar’s eyes opened. Lifting her head, she growled down at them.

“Crap, now what?” Martha asked.

“Keep walking away. Slowly. No sudden moves and don’t stare,” Mouse said. “Maybe I can get her to understand we aren’t after her cubs.”

Shelly quickly averted his gaze. He did recall Mouse once mentioning that cats took eye contact as a challenge, and that was the last thing they wanted. Jefferson’s hand found his and Shelly gave it a grateful squeeze. The mother jaguar grunted loudly, angrily. It sent a shiver up Shelly’s spine.

Mouse made a vibrating huffing noise in response.

Looking up just enough to see the jaguars without making eye contact, Shelly could see the mother jaguar’s ears swivel forward, an almost confused expression in her eyes. Mouse repeated the sound. 

One of the cubs lifted its head.  _“Wraaahhh!_ ” 

The mother’s ear twitched in the cub’s direction.

Mouse huffed again. He blinked slowly at her. To Shelly’s surprise, the mother jaguar made the huffing sound back. She blinked, then lowered her head to her huge paws. The group made it to the other side of the clearing and back into the thick of the jungle.

“What was that?” Fridge asked, eyes wide.

“Chuffing. Normally it’s a sound tigers make as a non-threatening greeting. I have heard leopards make the sound as well, so I hoped it also worked with jaguars,” Mouse explained. “We’ll have to find another way back, though. She doesn’t want to see us again, since this is her territory.”

Ming looked over at Shelly. “Is there a way back that doesn’t go this way?”

Shelly checked his map. “We can make a way. Once I know where we are in relation to the temple, I can mark this spot off limits.”

They continued through the jungle for another mile before the roar of a waterfall reached their ears. Or, as they found out upon breaching the treeline, multiple waterfalls. Four stepped waterfalls blocked their path, with a lone rope bridge spanning the massive gap, the other side hazy in the mist. The planks of wood were slick with the spray from the waterfalls. 

“These must be the Sheeret Falls,” Shelly said, stowing the map back into his jacket. He ran a hand along the rope wrapped stake in the ground. “They don’t appear frayed, meaning they were likely replaced recently. And by the villagers from Bosajabe, as this looks similar to the ropes I saw there.”

Jefferson crouched by the other stake. “Yeah. Looks like they were replaced maybe a year or so ago. We should be safe to cross,” he agreed.

“And that probably jinxed us, so… Knock on wood.” Spencer knocked on a nearby tree. “Just in case.”

“This is reminding me too much of those bridges in the mountains,” Martha muttered, arms crossed.

Dr. Bravestone nodded slowly, taking in the bridge and the waterfalls. “Alright. I’ll go first, to make sure it’s safe. We shouldn’t walk too close together, regardless, so keep three feet between each of you.” 

And then he stepped out onto the bridge. The planks creaked slightly, but held. They didn’t even budge. Dr. Bravestone kept a tight hold on the ropes as he inched out further onto the bridge. It was hard to tell just how far he got before he called back to them to start following. The mist swirled around his legs and waist, trying and failing to hide him from sight.

Mouse went next, followed by Ming, then Fridge.

Jefferson turned to Shelly. “Do you want me to go first, or do you?” he asked.

Shelly sighed softly. “I should, as I have the map.”

“Okay.”

Trying not to think about how high up they were, or the rushing water crashing over the sharp rocks below, Shelly stepped onto the bridge. The fibers of the rope scratched at his palms he was holding on so tight. One foot in front of the other, one step at a time, he kept his gaze firmly on Fridge’s back. The bridge swayed, buckling and jumping underfoot. Shelly heard Jefferson behind him a moment later, then Bethany, Alex, Spencer, and Martha, with Ruby taking up the rear.

Shelly’s breath hitched when his boot slid, but he stayed upright. His shoulders slumped as he sighed, and he kept going. He looked out at the falls. A rainbow had formed near the bottom of the first and largest waterfall. 

A glint of light caused him to stop.

Shelly frowned and tilted his head. Far below, nearly hidden among the glistening rock walls, was something reflecting the sunlight. “Wait, everyone! I see something!” he called forward.

The others stopped after a moment, his message traveling from Fridge, to Ming, to Mouse, to Dr. Bravestone. 

Fridge turned back to Shelly. “Dr. Bravestone is asking what you saw?”

“I’m not sure! It…” Shelly peered back over the ropes. “It looks gold!”

Once again the message was passed along.

“Mouse said he can see what you’re looking at. It looks like a door of some kind,” Fridge reported back.

The beating of drums nearly drowned out the rushing of the waterfalls. Shelly didn’t even hesitate to pull out the map. “Level Eleven: Sunken Ruins!” he shouted. “That must be an entrance to the temple!”

“How do we get to it?” Bethany asked, voice muffled.

“Mouse has climbing gear, remember?” Alex replied.

Fridge spoke up again. “Dr. Bravestone said we need to get over to the other side and we can climb down from there!”

“I only hope it’s so easy,” Shelly muttered.


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who's reading this! Thank you to everyone who's leaving comments and kudos especially! I appreciate it so much that people like this, really. <3

Despite having been sure of the bridge’s sturdiness, Jefferson was still relieved when they all made it to the other side in one piece. They all made their way along the edge of the cliff to where Shelly and Mouse had spotted the door. Mouse pulled out the climbing gear from his bag and got it set up.

“It’ll have to be one at a time,” Mouse explained, harness in hand. He held it out to Dr. Bravestone. “You probably want to go first like usual, hm?”

Dr. Bravestone chuckled. “You know me well.” He took the harness and strapped it on, clearly having done it before.

Mouse gave a fond roll of his eyes as Dr. Bravestone climbed down the rock wall. “Right. So do any of you  _not_ know how to use the climbing gear?” he asked, eyeing Spencer and the others.

Alex and Bethany were the only ones to not raise their hands.

“I sort of used it to climb to Jurgen’s  fortress before, but that was when I was Dr. Bravestone, so I don’t think it counts,” Spencer said.

Martha nodded. “Same. But as Ruby—obviously.”

“Then I guess I’ll stay up here until you all get down there. Watch when the others go,” Mouse told them. He walked to the edge and leaned over to watch Dr. Bravestone.

Jefferson and Shelly also approached the edge, though Shelly not quite as far. Dr. Bravestone had made it to a ledge far below. He unclipped the harness and Mouse pulled it back up.

“I’ll go next,” Ming said, taking the harness immediately. She strapped herself into the harness and quickly disappeared over the edge. 

Once the harness was brought back again, Jefferson volunteered to go. He got the harness on easily and then backed up to the edge of the cliff. Glancing back one last time to be sure of his bearings, he hopped backwards. The rocks were slippery from the waterfalls, making repelling down the side of them more difficult than he’d expected. Still, he managed to get to the bottom. Jefferson removed the harness and sent it back up.

A few moments later he saw Shelly inching over the edge high above. Even from a distance their eyes met, Shelly’s nerves obvious. Jefferson hoped Shelly knew that he would catch him if he fell, not that he expected him to. 

And he was right. 

Shelly landed on the ledge with ease, and as soon as the harness was off he turned to Jefferson with a small but bright smile. “I’ll admit I fully expected that to be worse,” he said. “Last time I had to do that was… well, it didn’t go nearly as well.”

“But you did it this time,” Jefferson replied, smiling right back. 

“I did,” Shelly agreed, looking proud of himself. As he deserved to be, in Jefferson’s opinion.

The others made it down one-by-one, with only Spencer struggling a little and panicking. He did make it, however, and soon they were all spread out along the narrow ledge.

“It’s an archway!” Dr. Bravestone called over to them. “It leads into a stone tunnel!”

Dr. Bravestone led the way into the tunnel—the archway to it topped with a golden keystone—only a short way, but it was wide enough for them all to stand together. The light from outside only reached so far, and further along the tunnel was cloaked in darkness. Water continued to splash in from the falls, running along the floor.

“Good thing I got the flares,” Ruby said, nodding to Mouse. He pulled out the box of flares and handed one over to her. She cracked it and an orange glow filled the space. Their shadows stretched up the stone walls, merging together and misshaped.

“Everyone be on the alert. We don’t know what might be down here,” Dr. Bravestone said. He and Ruby started down the tunnel, leaving the rest of them to follow behind.

The winding tunnel ended in a set of stairs leading up to a gate. It was difficult to tell what lay beyond, the light of the flare not reaching far enough. What could be seen, however, was a lever on the other side, sticking out of the wall just out of reach.

“If you get me the hook from the climbing gear, I can get that lever,” Ming said, pressed against the rusted iron bars. “Then Bravestone could pull it. It’s old and is probably jammed or sticky. Especially in this place.”

“Here,” Mouse said, handing the hook and cord over to her. 

Ming’s tongue poked out of the corner of her mouth as she concentrated, lining up with the lever. She swung the hook through the largest gap near the top of the gate. It missed. Muttering to herself, Ming reeled it back in. Tried again.

The hook caught.

“Ha! Got it,” Ming crowed, grinning. She handed off the cord to Dr. Bravestone. “Try not to jostle it too much.”

Dr. Bravestone nodded and stepped to the right and knelt on the top step. He yanked the cord down. The hook slid towards the wall before pulling the lever down. Creaking loudly, the gate sunk into the floor.

Everyone passed to the other side before Dr. Bravestone followed. The lever eased back into place, but the gate remained lowered. He passed the hook and cord back to Mouse, who tucked it back into his bag.

“Not too bad of a puzzle,” Alex remarked, head tilted. “I have a feeling they’ll get harder as we go, though.”

“Like what?” Jefferson asked.

Alex shrugged. “Depends? I’d be on the alert for wall darts or pendulums or something like that.”

“Ah.” Jefferson nodded, thinking back to the underground tunnel below the market, as Alex must have been. “That makes sense.”

“And the level is called Sunken Ruins, right?” Spencer piped up. “It’s probably a water level. Or a partial one.”

Alex pointed at him and smiled. “Exactly.”

Shelly shook his head, walking beside Jefferson as they all headed down the next tunnel. “I don’t like the sounds of all that. But I suppose it’s good to know what to expect,” he said.

“Yeah,” Jefferson agreed, elbow brushing against Shelly’s. “I think we’ll do fine. We’re experts in our field, and they know what to expect from video games.”

“True.” Shelly flashed him a small smile.

“We’ll be totally fine,” Bethany said brightly from behind them.

Not a moment later the flare died.

“And you all told  _me_ not to jinx us,” Fridge’s disembodied voice complained.

“Shh! I hear something,” Ruby said. “Mouse, quick, get another flare.”

A quiet skittering approached, like hundreds of little legs tapping against the stone walls and floor. 

“Something touched my foot!” Martha exclaimed. Her voice was followed by quick footsteps.

_“Oof!”_

“Sorry, Spencer.”

Red light bloomed in the small space, illuminating the swarm of large spiders filling the tunnel.

Jefferson didn’t pause to think, lunging for Mouse’s backpack. He reached inside and pulled out a pistol. Perfect. Jefferson turned and shot the spider heading right for Martha. She screamed, leaping back away from the splatter of spider guts.

Dr. Bravestone punched a spider that dropped from the ceiling right in front of him, flinging the pulverized remains against a wall. Jefferson shot another few as Mouse tossed Ming her sais and Ruby her nunchucks. They mowed down the spiders, steadily moving the group forward and leaving the area behind a mess.

A faint light came into view, and when they turned a corner, they could see it came from an archway. It looked like light from outside  illuminating a room . The group stepped out onto a walkway high above a large room. Above, sunlight spilled in through a hole in the ceiling, along with a small stream of water which flooded the room below. Ivy and moss clung to the walls and the crumbled remains of pillars and statues. Through the foliage, carvings could just be made out, the colors they were painted with that had once been rich and vibrant had faded. Vines dangled from the ceiling and spiderwebbed out from holes in the walls.

“So now where do we go?” Bethany asked, keeping her distance from the tunnel. She peered over the cracked stone railing, looking around. “There’s  two big doors down there .”

Ruby leaned against the railing beside her, stretching out the flare and lighting up the water in red. After a moment she dropped it, the flare illuminating the space even more as it sank. “I see  them . The water doesn’t look too deep, so there must be someplace the water is draining to. If we can get down there, we’d be able to wade in it.”

“There are two archways to the left,” Ming pointed out, gesturing to where the walkway turned along the left side of the room. “Maybe one of them leads downstairs.”

“Is that really where we want to go, though?” Spencer asked, arms crossed. “What if what we need is somewhere on this level? Or higher up?”

Jefferson shrugged. “We won’t know until we try. We’ve only got three doors to choose from that we can see. If one’s not right, there are others.”

“Unless one’s trapped,” Spencer muttered as they headed along the walkway to the archways.

The first archway had a short hall that was blocked by rubble. There was enough room at the top for someone small to squeeze through, but they were all in agreement they’d try other ways first. They headed through the second archway, which brought them to a staircase winding downwards. And though the stairs were cracked and chipped away in places, the group managed to make it to the bottom without incident. Or near the bottom. They stopped a couple steps up and looked down at the water below, which had come in from the main room.

“We should probably test the water for traps before just wandering into it,” Alex said.

Dr. Bravestone nodded. “I’ll test it. And if we need it, we do have a small and large medipack left,” he said. And before anyone could protest, he took the final few steps into the water.

Nothing happened. The turquoise water was so shallow it barely reached his calves. The splashes he made as he walked echoed as Dr. Bravestone entered the main room. Again, nothing happened. He turned back to them. “Alright, all of you follow me. Be careful, though, we still don’t know if we might trigger something.”

Jefferson stayed in front of Shelly as they all waded out into the room. If anything happened, it would happen to him first. 

“Amazing,” Shelly murmured, looking around  with eye s glittering in excitement. “I wish we had the time to study all this. And, if I had to hazard a guess, I believe we’re in an antechamber.” He paused and picked up something from the water. “A piece of alabaster… Truly fascinating. Ah! But I shouldn’t touch anything.” Shelly placed the alabaster carefully back where he’d gotten it.

They made it to the huge double doors at the far end of the chamber, which were flanked by two statues—only one of which was still intact enough to make out that it had been some kind of monkey. There weren’t any handles or rings to use to open them, however. Or any other obvious way of making them open. Dr. Bravestone shoved at one of them with his shoulder, but it didn’t budge. 

“Looks like another puzzle,” Spencer said, hands on his hips. 

Alex nodded. “Which means there’s probably a lever or button somewhere to open them. We just have to find it.”

“Spread out and look for anything useful, everyone,” Dr. Bravestone instructed. “But be careful.” 

They searched the entire room. Every nook and cranny, every alcove, under the water, behind statues, in vases and pots  and under fallen pillars. After several sweeps, they came up empty handed. 

“There has to be something  _somewhere,_ ” Bethany sighed. “The game wouldn’t just lead us here for nothing, right?”

Fridge frowned up at the walkway from before. “I don’t know video games, but how likely is it that there’s something down that other hallway?”

Spencer and Alex exchanged a look. 

“Very likely,” Alex said. “Someone’s gonna have to climb through that gap and check.”

“And by someone you mean me,” Ming said, already heading for the stairs. “I’m the only one who can fit.”


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy (late) Halloween and Happy All Saints Day/Day of the Dead everyone! And thank you for the wonderful comments! Here's another chapter for you all!

Ming strapped her sais to her belt and climbed up the rubble to the gap with ease. If she was going in there it wasn’t going to be unarmed. She peered through to the other side. It was dark. Ming twisted to look back at the others. “How many flares do we have left?”

Mouse tapped his chest, bringing up the maroon screen. He swiped at it, turning it to the Inventory screen. “It says three more.” Sending the screen away he pulled the flares from his bag, then tossed one to her.

“Thanks,” she replied, catching the flare. She cracked it, causing it to glow red, and stuck her hand through the gap. Looking through it, she could see the hall turned a corner, but there didn’t appear to be any traps or spiders. “Seems all clear. I’ll be right back.”

She had to drop the flare to the other side in order to squeeze through, feet first. Ming dropped to the ground, scooped up the flare, and waited, tense.

“Everything alright?” Dr. Bravestone called after her.

“Fine!” Ming called back, holding the flare high. Silent as ever, she crept down the hall to the corner. The stone was smooth and cool against her fingers as she looked around the bend. A long hallway stretched in front of her, the end too far away to be lit by the flare. A few vines clung to the walls and spread along the floor. _Just great. Looks completely safe,_ she thought, rolling her eyes.

Ming stood at the edge of the new hall, arms crossed. She didn’t really have any way of testing the hall for potential traps, so she would have to just go for it. Which was something she hated doing. As a general rule, Ming preferred having a foolproof plan before doing any kind of work. Though, having started working with Dr. Bravestone and the others, that rule was getting stepped all over. She sighed.

She took a tentative step forward. Then another. And another. As Ming kept going, more of the hall came into view, and she could just barely make out a stone lever peaking out of the shadows at the very end. She glanced at the flare, then back at the lever. Ming flung the flare ahead of her. It clattered to the floor and rolled, bumping into the foot of the monkey statue that held the lever. The hall was empty aside from the lever, however she could make out faint carvings in the stone walls. _What even is the purpose of this hall?_ she wondered, continuing on. It seemed a little pointless.

The floor quivered beneath her boots. Ming’s eyes widened and she took off in a sprint. With a loud groan, the tiles gave, crumbling away behind her. 

Under her. 

Ming screamed as she dropped, arms flailing. Her hand brushed something rough but thin. She grabbed it with both hands, stopping her fall. Ming wrapped her legs around it, clinging to what she realized was a dangling vine. It twisted as it swayed back and forth, but didn’t break from where it was attached to more vines on the ceiling.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Ming looked up. She could see the floor that had remained intact a foot away. With a glance over her shoulder, she saw the hall she’d come down. The floor there was farther away, but she could see where the remaining  tiles were in the gloom. Ming looked down and grimaced. There was no telling where the pit she was dangling over ended. It was just a void.

Ming climbed a little higher up the vine. Reaching out with one hand, she stretched her fingers as much as possible towards the floor. And came up far too short. She wouldn’t be able to reach the other side of the gap from where she was. Ming huffed. Only one thing to do. She rocked backward, then forward, causing the vine to start swinging. As it swept forward, Ming shoved off against the wall in front of her with her foot, shooting her back again. The added momentum was enough. As the vine arched up, Ming let go. She hit the floor and rolled up and to her feet. 

Panting, she walked over to the flare and picked it up. Ming tucked it into her belt, then grabbed the lever and yanked it down. The sound of stone scraping against stone echoed around her, followed by a loud rumbling coming from a distance. Ming nearly jumped when the wall to her left slid aside to reveal a secret passage with a flight of stairs. It had to be better than going back the way she had come.

Ming jogged down the winding steps. Her brows rose as she reached the bottom, stepping out of a hidden wall panel into the antechamber. Splashing alerted her to the others who ran through the water towards her.

“You opened the doors, great job,” Dr. Bravestone said with a wide grin.

Looking over, she could see he was right. The double doors had opened, showing a wide staircase leading down, and water was already flowing down them. Ming shrugged and looked back at him. “Easy. Let’s hurry up and keep going,” she said.

* * *

Though the steps were slippery, the group got down them safely. Behind another set of double doors—which opened easily—was a new hallway that was lit by the light coming from the antechamber. Statues of rhinos and  lions lined the hall, between which there was the occasional archway.

Jefferson had a bad feeling about it, not  that  there was any obvious reason why. He could see by the look on Alex’s face that he felt similarly. “Thinking we should take the lead on this one?” Jefferson asked.

Alex nodded. “Yeah. If Dr. Bravestone doesn’t mind?”

“If you both feel that it’s a good idea, I don’t have any problem with it,” Dr. Bravestone replied, gesturing for them to do so.

As they fully stepped into the hall, the uneasy feeling increased. Jefferson scanned the walls and floors for anything suspicious while they walked along the hall. 

“It appears that most of these rooms are prayer chambers,” Dr. Bravestone commented.

“To multiple deities perhaps?” Shelly added. “Though that legend only mentioned one.”

“Do you guys think maybe we should be checking out some of these rooms? Maybe there’s stuff hidden inside, or clues or something?” Spencer asked, pausing by one archway. 

Jefferson hadn’t seen much in the small rooms beyond old alters with statuettes or bowls with moldy offerings inside. Still, Spencer made a good point. He nodded. “We can at least check the ones we’ve passed so far,” Jefferson replied.

The group spread out to look through the rooms they’d already passed by. Shelly joined Jefferson in the room closest to where they’d left off. The stone alter contained a small ivory statue of an elephant, with a golden bowl filled with ash and a yellowed scroll in front of it. 

Shelly picked up the scroll and looked it over. “Interesting… I’m not fluent in the ancient language of Jumanji, but I can make out a few words,” he said.

“What’s it say?” Jefferson asked, leaning over his shoulder. 

“It looks like a prayer? And to a single shapeshifting deity. I suppose that might be why there are so many animals, if this deity can turn into all of them,” Shelly explained, adjusting his glasses. He squinted at the scroll, humming quietly in thought. A sigh followed and Shelly shook his head. “I can’t get anything else from this. Perhaps Finbar might?”

Jefferson nodded and they headed from the room. Flames sparked to life in the torches on the walls. “Shit. That can’t be good,” he muttered as everyone spilled out into the hallway to see what was going on.

All along the walls on both sides of the hall, sections of stone about knee high parted. Razor sharp blades swung out. They all gave cries of alarm, moving out of the way. The blades retracted, then swung back out. In, out, in, out, creating loud and rhythmic  _sha-shink_ sounds throughout the hall. Luckily there were small gaps between each blade where the archways were that, if they stood still, they wouldn’t have their legs sliced out from under them.

“Oh no. I shouldn’t have taken the scroll,” Shelly muttered, looking down at the scroll in his hands. He carefully set the scroll back in the room, but it didn’t change the situation.

“What do we do?” Martha asked. “How do we get past these things?”

“It’s all about timing,” Spencer said.

Alex nodded. “He’s right. We need to watch the blades, see if there’s a pattern.”

Jefferson watched as the blades swung in and out. At first it was hard to tell, but after a few repetitions, he saw something. “There’s a two second pause while the blades are inside the wall. It looks just barely long enough to make it to the next archway where the blades only come out of one side,” he told them.

“Yes. The archways alternate as well,” Shelly pointed out. “We’ll need to go back and forth.”

“Why not just go over them? We could use the statues,” Ming suggested, gesturing at a nearby statue.

“I don’t think so,” Spencer replied. “The first time we were here, when we tried to go around a puzzle, it ended in a really,  _really_ bad death.” He shuddered, eyes haunted.

“Then we’ll do it your way, Seaplane,” Dr. Bravestone said with a nod.

Jefferson looked to Shelly. “We can do this,” he said, smiling reassuringly.

Shelly nodded. “We can,” he agreed. 

Just as the blades retracted, Jefferson and Shelly dashed forward to the next archway. They just barely made it, the blades swinging back out mere inches from their legs. Jefferson looked back to see everyone else had made it as well. 

The blades disappeared again. And again they ran forward. Jefferson heard Bethany yelp, and glanced over his shoulder in time to see Alex yanking her out of the way of a blade. 

“Bethany, you okay?” Martha called to her.

“Yes!” Bethany replied. She smiled up at Alex. “Thank you.”

Alex cleared his throat, letting go and looking away. “Oh. Yeah, ‘course. No problem.” 

Jefferson looked to Shelly. “Ready again?”

“I am.”

They waited. Then hurried to the right. Wait, left, wait, right, wait left, and so on until they made it to the end of the hallway. It took time, but eventually everyone made it, joining them in front of a large wooden door. A wooden crocodile head attached to the door held an iron ring in its mouth.

Jefferson grabbed the iron ring on the door and pulled it open. He wasn’t really surprised by what lay on the other side, already getting an idea of the sort of challenges Jumanji was forcing on them.  Beyond was a nother huge room, even bigger than the antechamber, that had almost completely fallen apart and  been  flooded. Stepping out onto what remained of the floor, Jefferson could see the water below was deep, but clear enough for him to make out the bottom. Sections of floor that hadn’t crumbled away were scattered throughout the room, some smaller than others. Light came in from more holes in the ceiling, revealing other sections of temple high above, and eventually the bright blue sky.

“Hey, is anyone else seeing what I’m seeing?” Martha asked, pointing towards the middle of the room.

Long, dark shadows were floating beneath the water. What Jefferson had once thought was a bit of rubble moved, and a yellow slitted eye opened.

“Crocodiles,” Fridge said, shaking his head. “Should’ve guessed.”

Ruby rested her hands on her hips. “Which means we have to figure out this room without falling in the water.”

“It’ll be a challenge, but we’ll make it through.”  Dr. Bravestone said. He looked off into the distance, smoldering. “We can’t fail.”


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again I'd like to thank everyone who's reading this, and everyone who leaves comments and/or kudos. You're all so nice!

Jefferson looked to the nearest section of floor, then the second closest. “It looks like we could maybe jump from one bit to the next,” he said.

“You’re right. As long as they’re stable, anyway,” Ruby agreed, nodding. “We might have to go in twos and threes. Even the widest would barely hold four of us.”

Alex stepped to the edge. “I think we’re trying to get to the double doors over there,” he said, pointing to one side of the room. “Which means we’ll probably also have to find a lever. I doubt it’d be as easy as just getting to them.”

“Easy?” Fridge repeated, brows rising. _“That’s_ easy?”

“Basic level progression, especially for platforming puzzles,” Spencer said. “The first lever was the easiest, the second one we had to find but it wasn’t too hard to get to, and then we had to get past some blades to the last door. It’d make sense that this puzzle would be even harder.”

Bethany huffed and shook her head. “I just hope it’s the last puzzle. I don’t even wanna know what would be harder than this.”

“Let’s get further into the room,” Dr. Bravestone said. “Then maybe we’ll see where the lever might be.”

He jumped the gap and landed easily on the nearby floor. It didn’t give out and nothing else happened. Dr. Bravestone hopped to the next platform, and again everything was fine. Ruby followed him with just as little fanfare.

Mouse sighed and took several steps back. “Always hated this part of the job,” he muttered. And with that he took a running leap. It was slow, but he made it, dropping onto his knees. Mouse stood, backed up as far as the platform would let him, and did another running jump to the next spot.

Jefferson went next, landed the jump and turned to Shelly, who looked nervous. He held out his hands. “Come on, I’ll be right here for you.”

Shelly licked his lips, nodded, then took a few steps back. He grimaced, ran and jumped. And made it, grabbing Jefferson's hands. Shelly met Jefferson’s smile with one of his own. The next jump wasn’t as big of a gap, and they managed to get to that one even more easily. Behind them, Ming followed.  The third jump, however, was a little bigger than the first. Jefferson got enough of a running jump to make it, but he was worried about Shelly. Mouse had only barely made it. Once again, Jefferson waited at the ready as Shelly backed up. 

He jumped. 

His boots made contact with the edge of the floor, but his balance was off. With a shout of alarm, Jefferson lunged forward and grabbed Shelly’s pinwheeling arms, hauling him to safety. 

“Oh god!” Shelly gasped, clinging to the front of Jefferson’s jacket.

“It’s okay, you made it. I’ve got you,” Jefferson soothed.

“The more nervous you are, the harder it will be,” Ming said from the second platform. “So try not to be nervous.”

Shelly gave a shaky little laugh and nodded, letting go of Jefferson. “Thank you,” he said. He looked back at Ming. “I’m alright. I think I can relax a little more from here.”

Ming nodded, continuing on. Jefferson rubbed Shelly’s arm and smiled.

Eventually, the group made it to the center of the room, spread across the various platforms.

“Does anyone see a lever?” Dr. Bravestone called out.

“I see a tunnel below the water!” Martha replied. “I’m really hoping it’s not down there.”

“Who the  _hell_ built this place?” Fridge demanded, throwing his hands into the air. “How were people supposed to worship here if they had to avoid all these damn death traps? And the layout makes no sense!”

Spencer shrugged. “Video game logic.”

Fridge shook his head. “Yeah, well video game logic is stupid!”

“I don’t see anywhere else the lever might be,” Ruby said, looking around the room. “Which means that’s probably it.”

“We’ll need to distract the crocodiles while someone goes down to check,” Dr. Bravestone said, rubbing his chin. He looked at the crocodiles that were floating in the water, watching them. 

“I’ll get the lever,” Ruby volunteered.

Dr. Bravestone nodded. “Then the rest of us will keep them occupied.” He turned to mouse. “What’s the best way to keep their attention?”

“Other than food?” Mouse asked. “Let’s see… These appear to be Morelet’s crocodiles, based on how broad the snout is. Normally they’re native to Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala. I don’t think talking to them will help. Most crocodiles think they’re smarter and don’t care about what I have to say… Crocodiles  _are_ extremely intelligent and can understand patterns and even make traps, which means tricking them will be hard.”

“Wow. Sounds like we’re screwed,” Fridge remarked.

“Not necessarily,” Mouse said. He nodded to himself. “I have an idea. Crocodiles are protective over their young. I may be able to mimic the distress sounds of a young crocodile. If some of you can help cause a commotion, it might confuse and help trick them.”

“Just make sure you’re as far away as possible,” Ruby said, gesturing to platforms far across the room. 

Mouse, Dr. Bravestone, Ming, Alex, and Bethany made their way to the furthest platforms. Jefferson, Shelly, Spencer, and Martha stayed put. They would be the backup in case any crocodiles tried to go after Ruby. Jefferson held his pistol at the ready.

It didn’t take long to catch the crocodiles’ attention. Mouse started up a high-pitched call. The others banged on the walls and shouted, making as much noise as possible. Hissing, the crocodiles glided through the water towards them.

Ruby dove into the water. With speed and grace, she swam down, down, down to the tunnel and disappeared inside. Then reappeared moments later. She sped to the surface and climbed out onto the nearest platform, pushing her dripping hair back from her face. “Shit! There’s two levers down there. Someone will have to help me.”

Jefferson shrugged off his jacket. He handed his pistol to Shelly. “You know how to use that, right?”

“In theory,” Shelly replied.

“It’ll have to do. Remind me to teach you sometime,” Jefferson said with a wink. He hopped across the platforms over to Ruby and they dove in.

The water was cool and pleasant. Jefferson kicked his legs hard, cutting his hands through the water and propelling himself as fast as he could. Ruby lead him into the tunnel, or more accurately the flooded hallway. It wasn’t very long, luckily. She grabbed one of the stone levers sticking out of the wall and anchored herself. Jefferson took the lever opposite her. It was a bit of a struggle, but they managed to yank them down at the same time.

Jefferson could feel his lungs protesting. He pushed away from the wall and they swam out of the tunnel. The crocodiles had noticed. They sped towards Jefferson and Ruby, giant maws gaping. Jefferson rolled out of the way, kicking the closest crocodile in the snout. It growled, swimming away only to circle back, cruel fangs glinting in the light. Jefferson breached the surface and hauled himself out onto the platform, Ruby doing the same beside him. The largest crocodile snapped at the edge and hissed.

“The doors didn’t open,” Bethany said, pointing at the still closed doors.

“So what were those levers for?” Ruby asked, wringing out her hair as she moved away from the edge. She looked around, and her brows rose. “Oh. That.”

Jefferson turned to see what she was looking at. A section of wall at one end of the room had slid to the side, revealing a passage behind it. “So are we thinking the real lever for the doors is in there?”

“We’ll have to look. Or  _I’ll_ take a look,” Dr. Bravestone said. “I don’t think we’ll be able to trick the crocodiles like that a second time, so, be careful out here. Keep an eye out for anything… well, anything.”

Dr. Bravestone jumped from platform to platform to the edge of the opening. He glanced back at them, then disappeared into the secret passage. In the water below them all, the crocodiles gathered, eyeing them with malevolent hunger, and a worrying amount of intelligence.

“God, why are these things so salty? Like, we haven’t done anything to them,” Bethany whined, keeping away from the edge of the platform she was on.

“They’re freshwater crocodiles, not saltwater,” Mouse said with a small frown.

Bethany blinked, then rolled her eyes. “No, that’s not what—”

The loud groaning of the opening doors cut her off. Beyond them, light illuminated a large set of stairs heading up. Ming hopped across the platforms and over to the doors, stepping through them to look up the stairs. Fridge, having been the second closest, followed. Spencer, Martha, Ruby, Bethany, and Alex started making their way over the platforms.

Jefferson leaped across the large gap to where Shelly was. “Come on, let’s go,” he said with a smile. “The jumps aren’t too bad.”

Shelly nodded. “Alright. I can do it.”

Once again, Jefferson jumped first to the closest platform, then turned to wait for Shelly. Shelly made the jump fairly easily and gave a relieved sigh. 

They both looked over to where Dr. Bravestone emerged from the passage. The doors groaned loudly, and everyone watched in shock as they swung shut. Fridge’s muffled shout came from the other side.

“What? Why did they close?” Martha exclaimed.

“It’s a timed door,” Alex said, his brows raised. “Once that lever is pulled, you only have so long to get through.”

Spencer shook his head. “I always hated timed puzzles.”

Dr. Bravestone frowned. “Then everyone get ready to move fast. I’ll pull the lever again.” He turned around and headed back into the passage.

Moments later, the doors opened again. 

“What the hell happened?” Fridge shouted.

“Timed puzzle!” Spencer called back.

Ruby made it across and through the doors easily. Alex and Bethany quickly followed. Jefferson could see Spencer and Martha making their own jumps out of the corner of his eyes as he jumped to the next platform and waited for Shelly. He wouldn’t leave him behind, especially with those circling crocodiles.

A loud hiss startled Shelly just as he made it. They turned to see Mouse a few platforms away, communicating with a particularly large crocodile. It snapped up at him, then slipped below the water. The doors started to close.

“We’re almost there,” Jefferson said to Shelly. They made it to the next platform, then the next, then landed in front of the doors. Jefferson grabbed Shelly’s hand and tugged him through the ever narrowing gap. Then Mouse hurried through. 

The doors inched closer and closer together. They were almost closed. Dr. Bravestone squeezed through, and just in time as the doors slammed shut behind him. He gave a sigh of relief, then looked to make sure everyone was there. Seemingly satisfied, he then looked up the stairs.

Jefferson turned to do the same. It was a long staircase, but at the top appeared to be another door. He just hoped it wasn’t locked. The group trudged up the stone steps, and were surprised to see it was open. They walked carefully through the narrow hallway and through another open door. 

Bushes with vibrant flowers lined the dirt path beyond. A loud swooshing sound caught their attention and they looked up. Milo dove towards them, landing gracefully on the path.

“Mom?” Spencer asked, looking at where Ms. Gilpin sat astride the pegasus. “I thought you were staying behind? How did you find us?”

Ms. Gilpin hopped off. “I had a bad feeling. I couldn’t just let you go off again without me.”

Milo snorted and pawed the ground. 

“Milo said one of Cyclone’s  abilities is tracking people,” Mouse explained.

Spencer shook his head. “Fine, okay. Just, be careful okay?”

“I always am. It’s you all I’m concerned about,” Ms. Gilpin retorted, arching an eyebrow at him.

“We don’t have time for this,” Ming complained, starting down the path.

Dr. Bravestone nodded, following. “She’s right. We don’t know how far ahead the stranger is. We need to hurry. If you’re coming with us, Ms. Gilpin, then you’ll be following our lead.”

“I have no problem with that.”

The twisting path lead them through the thick trees, flowering vines dangling from the branches and obstructing their view. Brushing them out of the way, they came to a stop.

“Wow…” Bethany breathed, eyes wide.

“Is that…?” Fridge asked, just as shocked.

Before them stretched the glittering walls of a huge city, and rising high above in the distance, an enormous golden step pyramid.

“The Golden City,” Shelly confirmed.


	23. Chapter 23

The first few buildings they came across as they entered the Golden City were glittering stone structures, sturdy and whole. However, as they followed a weed infested cobblestone road further inside, the buildings were crumbling. Pillars fallen over, sections of red-orange tiled roof caved in, walls reduced to sparkling rubble. Vines had crept in and were slowly taking over.

Shelly stopped at one and ran a finger over a partly collapsed wall. “How interesting,” he remarked, brows rising. “Iron Pyrite. That would explain the glittering. And why these buildings have fallen apart.” It was a shame, too, because it looked like there had been many intricate details carved into them.

Bethany stopped beside him. “What’s Iron Pyrite? Looks like gold to me.”

“Ah, yes, that would be the reason for its other name,” Shelly replied with a smile. “Fool’s Gold.”

Jefferson grinned at Shelly. “Let me guess. You wanna come back here some time and do more research?”

Shelly ducked his head. Jefferson was getting to know him too well, apparently. “Well. I wouldn’t be opposed.”

“Everyone keep on the alert. We don’t know if the other person made it here before us or not, and we don’t want to be caught off guard,” Dr. Bravestone said, looking around as he lead the way.

“That’s assuming they aren’t already in the pyramid up there,” Ming muttered. She used her hand to shield her eyes from the glare of the setting sun off the golden step pyramid.

The city was like a sprawling maze. Any time it seemed like they made progress, they ended up in a familiar spot. They ended up at a small square with a dried up fountain three separate times.

“We need a way to mark where we’ve been,” Spencer said, clearly frustrated by being turned around yet again. “There’s gotta be something, right?”

Dr. Bravestone nodded. “I can try making a mark with my machete.” He turned to Mouse, who handed it over. Dr. Bravestone went over to a building and carved a large X into the wall.

Shelly tried not to cringe. The wall was already falling apart, and knowing where they were going was more important. _Sav_ _e_ _lives now, worry over archaeological finds later._

And so they set out again, this time with Dr. Bravestone marking their path. Mouse occasionally looked through his binoculars, looking both for a clearer path to the city center and for the mysterious stranger.

“This place is kind of creepy, not gonna lie,” Bethany said, arms crossed.

“A bit like a liminal space, yeah,” Martha agreed.

Before Bethany could ask what that meant, the sound of distant footsteps caught their attention.

“Everyone else heard that, right?” Fridge asked.

“Yes,” Ruby confirmed. “It sounded like it was coming from our right and ahead of us.”

They hurried after the footsteps.

“There!” Alex exclaimed, pointing. “I saw someone!”

“Stop!” Dr. Bravestone called out, charging forward. They rounded a corner and Dr. Bravestone sprinted towards the stranger.

The stranger twisted around and shot at them. Dr. Bravestone dodged and barreled after him.

“We need to cut him off!” Fridge shouted. “Split up into groups!”

“Yes, good idea!” Ruby agreed. She and Fridge took off down another street, followed by Martha, Ming, Bethany, and Alex. Shelly, Jefferson, Mouse, Spencer, Ms. Gilpin and Milo followed after Dr. Bravestone.

Milo suddenly took to the sky, his huge feathered wings creating a breeze. He looked around, then swooped down and back up. Milo neighed, circling.

“Why didn’t we think to ask him to do that before?” Spencer panted.

Shelly wondered the same. Still, better late than never. He and Mouse struggled to keep up as they all followed after Milo. But then Milo was moving again. The stranger was headed for the pyramid. They all came out into an open area at the base of the pyramid, and the stranger was already climbing the worn gold steps. And they were made of real gold, not just pyrite.

“Hurry!” Ruby called out as Milo dove down to fly beside them.

They ran up the steep steps after the stranger. Shelly was sure he was going to pass out before they even made it halfway. His thighs burned and his chest hurt, but he kept going. They reached the top just as the stranger got the huge double doors ahead of them open enough to slip through. However, they weren’t far behind.

“Stop!” Dr. Bravestone shouted again. His voice echoed throughout the room.

Sunlight bounced off gilded walls and emerald pillars. The stranger slowed in a patch of light and turned, walking backwards with his pistol raised. He was headed for a huge statue near the back of the room. It was a strange thing, half of it a naked human and crocodile hybrid, the other half fully human and appeared to be wearing clothes. In it’s huge gold hands, it held a black and green stone.

“Wait… Is that…?” Alex trailed off.

“Peter?” Spencer asked, eyes wide. “I thought he was dead.”

Peter Shepherd held his pistol at the ready, looking even more unhinged and beat up than before. “You again,” he said, glaring at them. “Back off! I’m not letting Jumanji win!”

“Peter, put the gun down,” Dr. Bravestone said. “We don’t want to hurt you.”

“No, you’d let this place do that for you. Like when you let that plant eat me,” Peter sneered. He aimed at Ruby. “Don’t even think about trying that again.”

Movement in the shadows caught Shelly’s attention. “Someone else is here!”

“No!” Peter turned and sprinted for the statue.

Dr. Bravestone turned to Mouse. “Boomerang!” Mouse tossed it to him, and Dr. Bravestone flung it. It whirled through the air before smacking Peter in the back of the head. He collapsed, hitting his head against the foot of the statue.

“Oh my god! Is he okay?” Bethany exclaimed.

Alex crouched beside him. “He’s bleeding,” he said with a small frown. He looked back at the others. “A head wound isn’t good. Should we use the medipack on him?”

“We only have the one left,” Ruby replied, crossing her arms.

Dr. Bravestone nodded. “True. But he doesn’t deserve to die. I think we should use it.” He turned to the others. “Any objections?”

Other than Ruby, who seemed reluctant, no-one disagreed. Mouse handed the large medipack to Alex, who placed it in Peter’s limp hand. It disappeared in a green glow.

“You truly are a hero, Dr. Bravestone.”

Nigel stepped out of the shadows, smiling as always. Except there was something different about him. As he approached, Shelly could see the green glow of his eyes.

“Nigel? What are you doing here?” Dr. Bravestone asked with a frown.

“Jumanji requested my aid,” Nigel replied serenely. He gestured to the statue. “They cannot speak for themselves, so I have been given the task to do so in their stead. Their avatar of sorts.”

Jefferson gave the statue a wary look. “And who are _they?”_

Nigel chuckled. “Forgive me, I forgot the introductions. They are Xilan, a god of Jumanji, and William, a young man from the other world.” He stepped in front of the statue, and the stone within its hands began to glow. “Allow me to do my job properly, and tell their tale…”

The world around them went black.

“What’s going on?” Shelly exclaimed.

“I think we’re getting a cut scene,” Alex replied.

* * *

_“The year was 1849, in Brantford New Hampshire.”_

A young man—a teen really—with short, swept back dark brown hair, wearing a simple black frock coat was standing in a huge library, staring down at a globe.

_“William Mooney was fascinated by the occult. And specifically, the existence other worlds._ _His father had fostered the interest with tales of Atlantis and his own_ _adventures_ _._ _And so_ _William_ _searched for all the information he could. Young William tried many methods. Tarot, pendulums, scrying in mirrors. Until he found what he was looking for.”_

The scenery changed. William hurried along a dark corridor, before opening a door and sneaking down the stone steps into a cellar. A cloaked man was waiting for him.

“Do you have it?” William asked, eyes bright with excitement.

The man held out his hand. “Do you have the payment?”

William reached into the pocket of his frock and plucked out a bag. It jingled as he handed it over. The man peered inside, nodded, then handed over a dark wooden box. William grinned.

Once again the scene changed. William knelt on the floor of a candle-lit room. His sleeves were rolled up, and his hair was mussed. Books and tarot cards were scattered around him, and in front of him a mirror had been set up, along with what appeared to be a board game.

William picked up the dice in a trembling hand. “A game for those who seek to find, a way to leave their world behind,” he chanted. He rolled the dice. 

At first, nothing happened.

The candles flickered, sparked, went out. William's breath hitched. Low, intense drum  beats echoed throughout the room. The candles roared back to life, a brilliant jade green. Shadows played upon the walls, stretching and curling and crawling. One of the shadows melted into the shape of a lion. It prowled across the ceiling, morphing into an elephant. The room shook with it’s steps, it’s trunk swinging from side to side before twisting into a snake. Hissing filled the air as the shadow slithered down the wall. Now a rhinoceros, the shadow charged past William, making the him jump with a shout. The shadow turned, becoming a monkey. It swished past him again before landing on the floor in front of him a crocodile. 

William scrambled backwards before hitting a stack of books. The shadow crocodile grinned as it disappeared into the mirror. 

“A new player,” a deep, resonant voice chuckled from the mirror.

Hesitantly, William inched back to the board game. A sitting figure became visible within the mirror, replacing William’s reflection. The figure was a human man from the neck down, brown skin glowing in the flickering green candlelight. However, the head was that of a crocodile. 

“Wh-Who are you?” William asked.

“Xilan, that is my name,” the figure replied. “But now it  i s time to play the game.”

William blinked. “Wait, I only started this infernal thing so I could open the way to a new world. Is that where you are from?”

Xilan leaned forward. “A new world… I see.” He smirked. “A win is then what you will need, to be free to visit Jumanji. Failure will cause you grief, cause you strife. Lose the game, you’ll lose your life.”

“And should I not wish to play?” William asked.

“You already are.”

Time passed, the both of them rolling the dice and moving their tokens—an elephant and a rhinoceros—along the twisting path of the game towards the center to the black and green stone. William had quickly fallen behind, however.

_"What Xilan didn’t know, was that William was skilled in sleight of hand.”_

William rolled the dice, and they landed with the exact number he needed to win. He slid his token to the center. “Jumanji.”

_“And what William didn’t know, was that there are consequences for cheating at a game with a god.”_

Xilan snarled in fury. The flames from the candles whipped around the room, swirling together and surrounding William and the mirror. William jumped to his feet. He screamed as his body dissolved into a mist, being sucked into the game. He grabbed a book and smashed the mirror before disappearing entirely.

* * *

Shelly shook his head, blinking rapidly as the “cut-scene” ended. The others looked just as disoriented.

“Somehow, shattering the mirror with Xilan still using it caused the two to merge,” Nigel said, nodding at the statue. “They are both trapped in this game, same as the rest of us.”

Fridge crossed his arms. “Okay, great. What does that have to do with us?”

“All we want is to go home,” Martha added.

Nigel smiled. “As do we all. And that is the point. That is why the game needed to find true heroes, ones who could split them up and return our worlds to normal.” He pointed at the stone in the statue’s hands. _“With a blade strike true and fast, for then we’ll all be free at last.”_

Dr. Bravestone looked to Mouse. “The machete will have to do,” he said, holding out his hand.

“Hopefully,” Mouse agreed, pulling the machete from his bag and handing it over.

Turning to Spencer, Dr. Bravestone nodded at the statue. “I have a feeling this is a two person job,” he said.

Spencer’s eyes widened, and he smiled. “Cool.”

The two held the hilt of the machete and brought it down against the stone. It split in half. Green light burst from the remains, sending both them toppling backwards.

The whole room shook. The statue cracked and split down the center.

Nigel groaned, grabbing at his head. “Get to the portal!” He shouted, the green glow in his eyes beginning to fade. “At the edge of the city!”

“What about Peter?” Bethany asked.

Dr. Bravestone stood and stumbled over to Peter. He scooped him up and placed him on Milo’s back. The room shook again and a pillar crashed to the ground a foot away. “Time to go!” Dr. Bravestone snapped.

They ran. The room continued to shake and fall apart around them, and ahead the double doors creaked ominously. One cracked off its hinges and fell with a loud thud. Shelly nearly tripped as they hurried out into the night. It wasn’t just the pyramid that was falling apart, the rest of the city was, too.

The group sprinted down the stairs, trying to stay upright as it seemed the entire world was shaking and the pyramid was falling apart beneath them. Buildings collapsed in on themselves. A wall crashed down in front of them, and they had to swerve and choose a new path. Green lightning streaked across the dusky sky.

In the distance, Shelly could just make out a bright green light. “Is that the portal?” he called out, clambering over a bit of debris.

“I think so!” Ruby shouted back.

Milo, soaring above them, neighed.

“Milo says it—” Mouse cut himself off with a yelp, ducking out of the way of a toppling pillar. “YES! It’s the portal!”

At the entrance to the city, bright green light swirled in a circular motion, creating a vortex.

“So we just, go through?” Bethany asked, eyeing the portal with a worried frown.

“That’s what Nigel said,” Ming replied. Despite the certainty in her voice, she looked just as wary.

Milo snorted as he landed, stomping at the ground.

“He says he thought he’d get to stay here,” Mouse translated. “He doesn’t want to go back.”

Spencer looked up at Milo. “You can’t stay here either. This place is falling apart.”

Martha nodded. “We all have to go through.” She touched Milo’s shoulder. “Please?”

Milo’s ears flicked back and forth, then he sighed. The building nearest to them cracked and split apart.

“We have to go. Now.” Ming looked at them all. “It was nice knowing you. Here’s hoping this works and we don’t all die.” And with that, she ran into the portal.

With a flap of his wings, Milo reared back, then ran in after her with Peter still on his back. Shelly gasped as Bethany threw her arms around him in a hug.

“I’m so glad we got to meet, like, for real,” she said.

It took him a moment, but Shelly returned the hug. “I’m glad we met as well.”

“Good luck, Shelly.” Bethany flashed him a grin, then ran into the portal.

Alex watched her go, then turned to Jefferson. “Like she said, I’m stoked we got to meet,” he said, holding out his hand.

Jefferson shook it. “Same. I hope everything turns out alright for you guys,” he replied. Alex nodded, then hurried into the portal after Bethany.

Ruby gave Martha a single nod. “Keep practicing the aikido, alright?”

“I will,” Martha said with a quiet laugh.

Ruby stepped into the portal. Fridge and Mouse exchanged awkward looks, shook hands, and then followed her.

Dr. Bravestone placed a hand on Spencer’s shoulder. “As strange as this adventure was, it was well worth it. I think we all learned a lot from each other, and I shall certainly remember our time as a team fondly. Goodbye, Spencer. Take care of your friends.”

Spencer gave a tearful grin. “Y-yeah. You, too.” He watched Dr. Bravestone disappear into the portal before turning to Martha, then his mom. The three hurried into the portal.

Shelly bit his lip, then looked at Jefferson. “I… I don’t know what will happen when we go through,” he said.

“We’ll just have to hope for the best.” Jefferson held Shelly’s hand. “It’ll be alright.”

“But if it’s not…” Shelly took a steadying breath, trying to ignore the crumbling world around them. “I love you, Jefferson.”

Jefferson’s eyes widened, and then he beamed. He leaned forward, kissing Shelly softly. “I love you, too.”

Shelly never thought he’d hear those words. His vision blurred with happy tears and he smiled. Knowing that Jefferson loved him, Shelly felt it didn’t matter so much if the portal worked or not. He’d never been happier.

Hand in hand, fingers intertwined, Shelly and Jefferson stepped into the portal together.

* * *

Spencer’s basement was a welcome sight. Bethany breathed a sigh of relief at the now familiar piles of junk and stacked boxes.

“I hate that. It always feels so damn weird,” Fridge grumbled, shuddering.

“Yeah, definitely not my favorite feeling,” Spencer agreed.

Martha gave a quiet laugh, nodding.

Alex chuckled. “I think I’m actually starting to get used to it.” He gave them all a lopsided grin. “So stoked we don’t have to do it ever again. Hopefully.”

“Oh wow….” Ms. Gilpin muttered, looking around wide-eyed. She turned to Spencer. “All of that _was_ real.”

Spencer’s brows rose. “You thought it wasn’t?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. I wasn’t sure. But now I am.” Ms. Gilpin frowned. “What happened to everyone else?”

Bethany shook her head. “Ms. Gilpin, the others are part of the game. Or… were? They’re not from here.” Her gaze landed on the broken game console. _“Ohmygod!_ You don’t think they, like, died in there? They went through the portal too, so they’ve gotta be safe, right? And Milo? Shouldn’t he have come back with us, though?”

Alex shrugged. “I don’t know… And if Milo isn’t here, then where’s Peter?”

Footsteps on the stairs caught them by surprise.

“You’re back!” Alan stopped at the foot of the stairs, taking them all in.

“Mr. Parrish? What are you doing here?” Ms. Gilpin asked, bewildered.

“Well… last time we left the game, both times it spit us back out pretty much where we were when we went in,” Martha explained. She looked at Ms. Gilpin. “He helped us out here when the game invaded Brantford.”

Alan nodded, approaching them. “I wasn’t sure how long to wait around. Considering you guys survived that game twice, I figured your chances were pretty good.” A grin brightened his features. “Also, I have great news.”

Fridge eyed him suspiciously. “Actual great news, or are you messing with us?”

“Actual great news,” Alan replied, rolling his eyes. But still, his smile remained. “Peter is alive. Whatever you did in there reset something, and it was like he never went into the game—okay, maybe not never. He remembered everything.” Alan’s shoulders slumped and suddenly he looked a lot older than he was. “Even from the board game.”

Alex frowned. “That doesn’t exactly sound great.”

Alan huffed, resting his hands on his hips. “Well, it could be worse. Especially since Judy got all her memories back, too. I have no idea how! And because Sarah and I were here, all three of us were able to convince him to get some therapy.  _Some,_ being the key word. Still, he’s okay.” Alan smiled again. “So thank you. Whatever you did in there fixed so many things.”

Bethany smiled as well. It wasn’t perfect, but Alan was right, that was great. Everyone was alive, and they would all be okay, eventually. The game was over. Bethany could only hope everyone from Jumanji was safe, too. 

“This has been a very strange day,” Ms. Gilpin sighed. “And I don’t know about you guys, but I could use something to eat. Why don’t we all go to Nora’s?”

“I think Sarah could meet us there. I’m sure she’s worried about everyone,” Alan agreed, heading for the stairs. “I’m inviting us along, Ms. Gilpin. If you don’t mind.”

Ms. Gilpin laughed. “Not at all.”

As they left the basement, part of Bethany expected to hear the drums calling them again. But everything was silent. 

It really was over.


	24. Epilogue

_Seven months later…_

Bethany couldn’t keep the smile from her face. Just as they’d agreed, she, Spencer, Martha, Fridge, Alex, Judy, and Peter had met up by the river. She sat on a boulder, watching Spencer and Peter try to skip rocks. Martha watched fondly, while Fridge and Judy teased them. Alex sat beside Bethany, smiling almost as wide as she was.

Judy hadn’t been sure about meeting with them all at first. As Alan had said, she had gotten her memories back of playing the board game and all that came with it. She’d been wary of the game showing back up, despite their assurances it wouldn’t. Bethany had a feeling the reason she’d come around was because, like Fridge, she too carried the fears of their playthroughs. Fridge still refused to touch cake, and Judy was terrified of flowers—especially purple ones.

Bethany already shipped it. Their names were kind of hard to combine, though she’d settled with Frudy. It was a work in progress.

Peter had apologized to them all multiple times, and they’d insisted they didn’t hold a grudge. Bethany certainly didn’t, anyway. He’d proven the last few times they’d met that he had gotten better. Every once in a while he’d go quiet, a haunted look to his eyes, but then he’d be back to making jokes.

“This is really nice,” Alex commented.

“It is,” Bethany agreed. She leaned back on her hands, the sun heated rocks warming her palms. “Sometimes it’s like, I don’t even know how much people don’t know me until I’m here, with everyone. You know?”

Alex nodded. “Yeah, I do.”

She bit her lip. “Do you ever think about them? The avatars?” Bethany looked at him. “I try to be positive and whatever but sometimes I worry about whether they’re okay. Like, did they get home, too?”

“Hey,” Alex said, reaching out and touching her shoulder. “I’m sure they’re all fine. They’re probably off on another adventure right now. Or maybe taking a break.”

Bethany smiled and gave a little laugh. “I hope so.”

“Spencer! Didn’t you say you brought snacks?” Fridge called, jerking his head in the direction of Spencer’s backpack, which was propped up on a nearby tree.

Spencer’s stone fell out of his hand and sunk into the river. He sighed and nodded, turning around. “Yep. Is everyone else hungry? I brought enough,” he offered, picking his way carefully over the rocks.

“I could eat,” Alex said, and Bethany nodded.

“Sure,” Martha replied.

“I wouldn’t mind,” Judy said, hopping over to a closer boulder. She froze.

They all could hear it.

Muffled drumming.

“Please tell me that’s _not_ what I think it is,” Bethany said, voice trembling.

Spencer stood in front of his backpack, unmoving.

Fridge glared at him. “Spencer… The drumming coming from your backpack had better be your hilarious new ringtone.”

“Uhh… No?” Spencer opened his bag and pulled out a palm-sized black stone. It was glowing green. “I swear I didn’t think it worked still!”

“What did you _do?”_ Judy exclaimed, backing away towards Peter.

Spencer shook his head. “I was going to suggest we toss it in the water! It was supposed to be therapeutic!” He gasped, dropping the stone to the ground.

They gathered around it to see a yellow-green mist swirling within. The mist cleared, forming words.

Spencer read it out loud. “One final reward for reaching the end… a way for you to meet with friends.”

A column of green light exploded from the stone, causing them all to scream and jump back. The light expanded into a tall circle, much like the portal they had used to get back home.

“What the hell is happening?” Fridge demanded.

The surface of the light rippled, then parted.

Martha’s eyes widened. “Is that…?”

“Dr. Bravestone!” Spencer gasped.

And not just Dr. Bravestone, but Ruby, Mouse, Professor Shelly, Seaplane, and Ming. They all stood on the other side of the light, looking back at them.

“It worked,” Ruby said, impressed.

“Hello everyone,” Dr. Bravestone greeted with a smile.

Martha’s brows rose. “What worked? How is this happening?”

Shelly adjusted his glasses. “Well, over the last few months I’ve been researching the temple of Jumanji. According to the writings I found, this stone was originally meant to activate a portal to other dimensions,” he explained. Shelly smiled. “We fixed the stone, hoping it would allow us to contact you.”

“That’s what that meant,” Peter muttered.

“A way to meet with friends,” Bethany said, grinning. “I’m so glad you guys are all okay. I was like, super worried.”

Alex chuckled. “Wow. So Jumanji actually can be nice.”

“Who knew,” Fridge remarked, bemused. He shook his head with a smile.

Dr. Bravestone stepped back. He smiled and held out his hand. “So, what do you say? Ready for a new adventure?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's the end, folks!
> 
> Thank you so much for reading this story everyone. When I started this I wasn't sure if anyone would like it, so to see the response this has gotten, I'm incredibly flattered and so very grateful to you all. I hope this ending was satisfying.  
> If it interests people, I probably will write other fics. Heck, might even do a sequel to this one. We'll see. ;)
> 
> Thanks again for reading!


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